Gunpowder originated from 9th century china Formulated late 19th century granular mixture of

a nitrate, typically potassium nitrate (KNO3), which supplies oxygen for the reaction; charcoal, which provides carbon and other fuel for the reaction, simplified as carbon (C); sulfur (S), which, while also serving as a fuel, lowers the temperature required to ignite the mixture, thereby increasing the rate of combustion.

A simple, commonly cited, chemical equation for the combustion of black powder is 2 KNO3 + S + 3 C K2S + N2 + 3 CO2

An explosive is a substance or a device that produces a volume of rapidly expanding gas that exerts sudden pressure on its surroundings. There are three common types of explosives: chemical, mechanical, and nuclear. Mechanical explosions are physical reactions, for example the effects of compressed air.

Black Powder
It is unknown who invented the first explosive black powder. Black powder also known as gunpowder is a mixture of saltpeter (potassium nitrate), sulfur, and charcoal (carbon). It originated in China around the tenth century and was used in fireworks and signals. Black powder is the oldest form of a ballistic propellant and it was used with early muzzle-type firearms. Being a mechanical explosive that is messy, black powder was eventually replaced by cleaner smokeless powder explosives.

Safety Fuse
In 1831, William Bickford an English leather merchant invented the first safety fuse. Using a safety fuse made black powder explosives more practical and safer.

Nitroglycerin

Nitroglycerin is a chemical explosive that was discovered by Italian chemist Ascanio Sobrero in 1846. Nitroglycerinis a mix of nitric acid and glycerin. Nitroglycerin is a mix of nitric acid, sulphuric acid, and glycerol.

Nitrocellulose
In 1846, Chemist Christian Schonbein discovered nitrocellulose or guncotton when he accidently spilled an acid mixture on a cotton apron and the apron exploded.

TNT
In 1863, TNT or Trinitrotoluene was invented by German chemist Joseph Wilbrand. It is considered a high explosive.

Blasting Cap
In 1865, Albert Nobel invented the blasting cap. The blasting cap provided a safer and dependable means of detonating nitroglycerin.

Dynamite
In 1867, Albert Nobel patented dynamite.

Smokeless Powders
In 1888, Albert Nobel invented a dense smokeless powder explosive called ballistite. In 1889, Sir James Dewar and Sir Frederick Abel invented another smokeless gunpowder called cordite. Cordite was made of of nitroglycerin, guncotton, and a petroleum substance gelatinized by addition of acetone.

Modern Explosives
In 1955, modern high explosives were developed. Explosives such as nitrate-fuel oil mixtures or ANFO and ammonium nitrate-base water gels now account for seventy percent of the explosive market.

Types and Uses

There are many types of explosives but they all pretty much fit into four main groups, Primary, Low, High, and Blasting Agents. Each of these groups is used for different things including blasting, military use, demolishing, and excavating. Some of these explosives were used hundreds of years ago and some are used now but you may see that we have progressed a lot since the first explosives.

Primary Explosives Primary, the first of the four main groups, is not as well known as the other groups, but is still used commonly. Primary explosives arent usually used as the main explosive itself, but as a detonator. They are good detonators because they are very sensitive to the heat of fuses. Common primary explosives are lead azide, lead stiphnate, and mercury fulminate. They arent very extravagant, but they do the job. Low Explosives Low explosives, the second of the four groups, contains the first real explosives. Gunpowder, in its two forms(black and the more modern gray), is the first of the low explosives and one of the first ever invented. Gunpowder doesn't explode, but burns rapidly forming a high pressure gas which launches objects extremely fast. The second of the low explosives may come as a surprise to you, fireworks! It is odd that something so peaceful as a fire work could be in the same group as weapons of war. Low explosives are not used to blow things up, but as a propellant instead. Some low explosives are beautiful, some deadly, but they are one of the many steps people have taken. High Explosives High explosives,the most stunning of the groups, is very unique. With greater power and less sensitivity than the others, high explosives are the perfect explosive for blasting and excavating. They arent just used for blasting and excavating, though, they are also used in many military weapons including missiles, bombs, and other weapons. Nitroglycerin, the most powerful and sensitive of all the explosives, was the first high explosive. With a touch of a feather nitroglycerin explodes, with a force that is three times that of gunpowder. Another type of high explosives is RDX. RDX is an explosive that was used in bombs for world war two. RDX is made of nitric acid and hexamethylene-tetramine. TNT (trinitro-totoluene) is also used in bombs and shells, as well as pentolite (PETN+TNT). PETN (pentaerythritol tretrinitrate) is the final high explosive, which is used in detonating caps and fuses.High explosives are stunning, but powerful and deadly. Blasting Agents Blasting agents, the final group of explosives, is the most peaceful because they are not used in military weapons, yet they are very powerful and are used in mining and excavating. Blasting agents arent used in military weapons, but mining and excavating instead. These are inexpensive, yet safe and powerful. Dynamite, a mixture of nitroglycerin

and kieselguhr(which is made of tiny sea animals bones), is the most well known blasting agent. Dynamite does what its made to do, and well, It blasts. ANFO, another blasting agent, is not very interesting, but contains a huge amount of power. ANFO (amonium nitrate+fuel oils) is used for excavating. Blasting agents are not very well known, but they are good at what there made for.

Detection tools
[edit] Dogs
Specially trained dogs can be used to detect explosives using their noses which are very sensitive to scents. While very effective, their usefulness becomes degraded as a dog becomes tired or bored. These dogs are trained by specially trained handlers to identify the scents of several common explosive materials and notify their handler when they detect one of these scents. The dogs indicate a 'hit' by taking an action they are trained to provide, generally a passive response. The explosive detection canine was originated at the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington, D.C. in 1970, by then trainer Charles R. Kirchner.[1]

[edit] Honey bees

This approach couples trained honey bees with advanced video computer software to monitor the bee for the strategic reaction. Trained bees serve for 2 days, after which they are returned to their hive. This proven system is not yet commercially available. Biotechnology firm Inscentinel claim that bees are more effective than sniffer dogs.[2]

[edit] Mechanical scent detection

Main article: Machine olfaction Several types of machines have been developed to detect trace signatures for various explosive materials. The most common technology for this application, as seen in US airports, is ion mobility spectrometry (IMS). This method is similar to mass spectrometry (MS), where molecules are ionized and then moved in an electric field in a vacuum, except that IMS operates at atmospheric pressure. The time that it takes for an ion, in IMS, to move a specified distance in an electric field is indicative of that ion's size to charge ratio: ions with a larger cross section will collide with more gas at atmospheric pressure and will therefore be slower. Gas chromatography (GC) is often coupled to the detection methods discussed above in order to separate molecules before detection. This not only improves the performance of the detector, but also adds another dimension of data, as the time it

takes for a molecule to pass through the GC may be used as an indicator of its identity. Unfortunately, GC normally requires a bottled gas, which creates a consumable and ease of use issue for the system. GC columns operated in the field are prone to degradation from atmospheric gases and oxidation, as well as bleeding of the stationary phase. Columns must be very fast, as well, since many of the applications demand that the complete analysis be completed in less than a minute.

[edit] Spectrometry
Technologies based on ion mobility spectrometer (IMS) include ion trap mobility spectrometry (ITMS), and differential mobility spectrometry (DMS). Amplifying fluorescent polymers (AFP) use a molecular recognition to "turn off" or quench the fluorescence of a polymer. Chemiluminescence was used frequently in the 1990s, but is less common than the ubiquitous IMS. Several attempts are being made to miniaturize, ruggedize and make MS affordable for field applications; such as an aerosol polymer that fluoresces blue under UV but is colorless when it reacts with nitrogen groups.[3] One technique compares reflected ultraviolet, infrared and visible light measurements on multiple areas of the suspect material. This has an advantage over olfactory methods in that a sample does not need to be prepared. A patent exists for a portable explosive detector using this method.[4]

[edit] X-ray machines

Specially designed X-ray machines can detect explosives by looking at the density of the items being examined. They use Computed axial tomography based systems that are enhanced with dedicated software, containing an explosives threat library and false - color coding, to assist operators with their dedicated threat resolution protocols. [citation needed] X-ray detection is also used to detect related components such as detonators, but this can be foiled if such devices are hidden inside other electronic equipment.[5]

[edit] Neutron activation

Specially designed machines bombard the suspect explosives with neutrons, and read the gamma radiation decay signatures to determine the chemical composition of the sample. Explosive materials all have similar ratios of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen and oxygen, which the machine is able to detect.[citation needed]

[edit] Detection aids

A detection taggant can be added when explosives are made to make detection easier. The Montreal Convention 1991 is an international agreement requiring manufacturers of explosives to do this.[6] An example is with Semtex, which now is made with DMDNB added as a detection taggant.[7] DMDNB is a common taggant as dogs are sensitive to it. In the UK the relevant legislation is the Marking of Plastic Explosives for Detection Regulations 1996.[8]

[edit] Bogus Devices

The US Department of Justice warned in a National Institute of Justice publication, "Guide for the Selection of Commercial Explosives Detection Systems for Law Enforcement Applications (NIJ Guide 100-99)," about the ongoing trend of "Bogus" explosives detection equipment being sold to unsuspecting consumers. The report mentions by name the Quadro Tracker, an apparent dowsing rod with a freely pivoting radio antenna rod with no functioning internal components. "...There is a rather large community of people around the world that believes in dowsing: the ancient practice of using forked sticks, swinging rods, and pendulums to look for underground water and other materials. These people believe that many types of materials can be located using a variety of dowsing methods. Dowsers claim that the dowsing device will respond to any buried anomalies, and years of practice are needed to use the device with discrimination (the ability to cause the device to respond to only those materials being sought). Modern dowsers have been developing various new methods to add discrimination to their devices. These new methods include molecular frequency discrimination (MFD) and harmonic induction discrimination (HID). MFD has taken the form of everything from placing a xerox copy of a Poloroid [sic] photograph of the desired material into the handle of the device, to using dowsing rods in conjunction with frequency generation electronics (function generators). None of these attempts to create devices that can detect specific materials such as explosives (or any materials for that matter) have been proven successful in controlled double-blind scientific tests. In fact, all testing of these inventions has shown these devices to perform no better than random chance...."
[9]

A number of dowsing rod-style detection devices have been widely used in Iraq and Thailand, notably the ADE 651 and GT200, where they have been reported to have failed to detect bombs that have killed hundreds of people and injured thousands more.