The Chemistry of Powder and Explosives - Sciencemadness Dot Org

NITROGUANIDINE 389
material "firmly agglomerated in a manner to facilitate the naturally
slow combustion of that substance,"
An experiment with 18.11 grams nitroguanidine in a bomb of
75.0 cc. capacity (density of loading 0.241) showed an erosion
of 2.29 per gram of explosive.
The temperature (907°) which Vieille accepted as the temperature
produced by the explosion of nitroguanidine had been determined
earlier by Patart 19 who published in 1904 an account of
manometric bomb experiments with guanidine nitrate and with
nitroguanidine. The explosives were agglomerated under a pressure
of 3600 kilograms per square centimeter, broken up into
grains 2 or 3 mm. in diameter, and fired in a bomb of 22 cc.
capacity. Some of Patart's experimental results are tabulated
below. Calculated from these data, Patart reported for guanidine
PRESSURE, KILOGRAMS PER
SQUARE CENTIMETER
DEKSITY OF Guanidine
LOADING Nitrate Nitroguanidine
015 1128 1 1304 l
1038 V1083 1584 Il435
J 1416 J
0.20
025
030
035
nitrate, covolume 1.28, force 5834, and temperature of explosion
929°; for nitroguanidine, covolume 1.60, force 7140, and temperature
of explosion 907°. He appears to have felt that these calculated
temperatures of explosion were low, for he terminated his
article by calling attention to the extraordinary values of the
covolume deduced from the pressures in the closed vessel, and
subpcnded a footnote:
It may be questioned whether the rapid increase of the
pressure with the density of loading, rather than being the
consequence of a constant reaction giving place to a considerable
covolume, is not due simply to the mode of de-
19 Mem. poudro,, 13, 153 (1905-1906).