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82-487: On detonation, the steel body containing 155 g (5.5 oz) of TNT releases around 1,800 fragments, weighing on average 0.1 g (0.0035 oz). UK grenade range safety data suggests the L109 (see- Variants ) and by extension all live versions – may represent a danger at ranges up to 200 m (220 yd). It is primarily intended for use during fighting in built-up areas , trench clearing, and wood clearing. It

164-425: A blue body with a brown base and is fitted with a silver washer) the practice fuse is fitted into the bottom of the reusable striker mechanism then the entire assembly is screwed into the top of the grenade. In this version the safety lever is attached by a plastic strap to prevent loss, the entire unit, apart from the expended L162 practice fuse, being reused. Markings, again in white, include 'GREN HAND PRAC L111A1',

246-414: A commercial blasting cap consisting of a paper tube full of black powder , with wires leading in both sides and wadding sealing up the ends. The two wires came close but did not touch, so a large electric spark discharge between the two wires would fire the cap. In 1832, a hot wire detonator was produced by American chemist Robert Hare , although attempts along similar lines had earlier been attempted by

328-439: A dedicated programming device. Wireless electronic detonators are beginning to be available in the civil mining market. Encrypted radio signals are used to communicate the blast signal to each detonator at the correct time. While currently expensive, wireless detonators can enable new mining techniques as multiple blasts can be loaded at once and fired in sequence without putting humans in harm's way. A number 8 test blasting cap

410-448: A few milliseconds to fire, as the bridgewire heats up and heats the explosive to the point of detonation. Exploding bridgewire or EBW detonators use a higher voltage electric charge and a very thin bridgewire, .04 inch long, .0016 diameter, (1 mm long, 0.04 mm diameter). Instead of heating up the explosive, the EBW detonator wire is heated so quickly by the high firing current that

492-567: A fuse, to detonate nitroglycerin. In 1868, Henry Julius Smith of Boston introduced a cap that combined a spark gap ignitor and mercury fulminate, the first electric cap able to detonate dynamite. In 1875, Smith—and then in 1887, Perry G. Gardner of North Adams, Massachusetts—developed electric detonators that combined a hot wire detonator with mercury fulminate explosive. These were the first generally modern type blasting caps. Modern caps use different explosives and separate primary and secondary explosive charges, but are generally very similar to

574-610: A manufacturers mark 'SM' meaning Swiss Munitions, and a lot number. The Nr300 is the Dutch designation for the HG 85. It is exactly like the L109. There is also the Nr330. Offensive grenade, painted black with a yellow band around the neck. OHG92's were produced for export only. It solely relies on its explosive power, and doesn't have a steel fragmentation liner. For this reason, it has no armour piercing capability. The HG 85 entered service in

656-532: A pollutant whose removal is a priority. The USEPA maintains that TNT levels in soil should not exceed 17.2 milligrams per kilogram of soil and 0.01 milligrams per litre of water. Dissolution is a measure of the rate that solid TNT in contact with water is dissolved. The relatively low aqueous solubility of TNT causes solid particles to be continuously released to the environment over extended periods of time. Studies have shown that TNT dissolves more slowly in saline water than in freshwater. However, when salinity

738-422: A pressure wave from a starter explosive, called an explosive booster . Although blocks of TNT are available in various sizes (e.g. 250 g, 500 g, 1,000 g), it is more commonly encountered in synergistic explosive blends comprising a variable percentage of TNT plus other ingredients. Examples of explosive blends containing TNT include: Upon detonation , TNT undergoes a decomposition equivalent to

820-540: A small amount of TNT or tetryl in military detonators and PETN in commercial detonators. The first blasting cap or detonator was demonstrated in 1745 when British physician and apothecary William Watson showed that the electric spark of a friction machine could ignite black powder, by way of igniting a flammable substance mixed in with the black powder. In 1750, Benjamin Franklin in Philadelphia made

902-435: A small pyrotechnic delay element, up to a few hundred milliseconds, before the cap fires. Match type blasting caps use an electric match (insulating sheet with electrodes on both sides, a thin bridgewire soldered across the sides, all dipped in ignition and output mixes) to initiate the primary explosive, rather than direct contact between the bridgewire and the primary explosive. The match can be manufactured separately from

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984-942: A very limited amount of mineralization of TNT in a liquid culture, though not in soil. An organism capable of the remediation of large amounts of TNT in soil has yet to be discovered. Both wild and transgenic plants can phytoremediate explosives from soil and water. Detonator A detonator is a device used to make an explosive or explosive device explode. Detonators come in a variety of types, depending on how they are initiated (chemically, mechanically, or electrically) and details of their inner working, which often involve several stages. Types of detonators include non-electric and electric. Non-electric detonators are typically stab or pyrotechnic while electric are typically "hot wire" (low voltage), exploding bridge wire (high voltage) or explosive foil (very high voltage). The original electric detonators invented in 1875 independently by Julius Smith and Perry Gardiner used mercury fulminate as

1066-581: Is 14.5 GJ/t (14.5 MJ/kg or 4.027 kWh/kg), which requires that the carbon in TNT fully react with atmospheric oxygen, which does not occur in the initial event. For comparison, gunpowder contains 3 MJ/kg, dynamite contains 7.5 MJ/kg, and gasoline contains 47.2 MJ/kg (though gasoline requires an oxidant , so an optimized gasoline and O 2 mixture contains 10.4 MJ/kg). Various methods can be used to detect TNT, including optical and electrochemical sensors and explosive-sniffing dogs. In 2013, researchers from

1148-461: Is a function of their ability to associate with the mobile phase (water) and a stationary phase (soil). Materials that associate strongly with soils move slowly through soil. The association constant for TNT with soil is 2.7 to 11 L/kg of soil. This means that TNT has a one- to tenfold tendency to adhere to soil particulates than not when introduced into the soil. Hydrogen bonding and ion exchange are two suggested mechanisms of adsorption between

1230-475: Is a major process that impacts the transformation of energetic compounds. The alteration of a molecule in photolysis occurs by direct absorption of light energy or by the transfer of energy from a photosensitized compound. Phototransformation of TNT "results in the formation of nitrobenzenes , benzaldehydes , azodicarboxylic acids, and nitrophenols , as a result of the oxidation of methyl groups , reduction of nitro groups , and dimer formation." Evidence of

1312-737: Is a reactive molecule and is particularly prone to react with reduced components of sediments or photodegradation in the presence of sunlight. TNT is thermodynamically and kinetically capable of reacting with a wide number of components of many environmental systems. This includes wholly abiotic reactants, like hydrogen sulfide , Fe , or microbial communities, both oxic and anoxic and photochemical degradation. Soils with high clay contents or small particle sizes and high total organic carbon content have been shown to promote TNT transformation. Possible TNT transformations include reduction of one, two, or three nitro-moieties to amines and coupling of amino transformation products to form dimers . Formation of

1394-510: Is altered, TNT dissolves at the same speed. Because TNT is moderately soluble in water, it can migrate through subsurface soil, and cause groundwater contamination. Adsorption is a measure of the distribution between soluble and sediment adsorbed contaminants following attainment of equilibrium. TNT and its transformation products are known to adsorb to surface soils and sediments, where they undergo reactive transformation or remained stored. The movement or organic contaminants through soils

1476-483: Is clipped over the safety lever and bushing on top of the grenade preventing the safety lever from moving. In the Swiss Army there is a training hand grenade with nearly the same size TNT charge (120–155 g (4.2–5.5 oz)), but no shrapnel mantle. It is designated EUHG 85 for Explosiv-Übungshandgranate (explosive training hand grenade). They are the same size, shape and weight, made up by adding iron powder, as

1558-421: Is consumed by the manufacturing process, but the diluted sulfuric acid can be reconcentrated and reused. After nitration, TNT can either be purified by crystallization from an organic solvent or stabilized by a process called sulfitation, where the crude TNT is treated with aqueous sodium sulfite solution to remove less stable isomers of TNT and other undesired reaction products. The rinse water from sulfitation

1640-469: Is effective against unprotected personnel up to 10 m (33 ft) away, and protected personnel up to 5 m (16 ft). The design of the grenade was made by the federal Munitionsfabrik Altdorf (MF+A) which became SM Schweizerische Munitionsfabrik and later RUAG Ammotech. The initial detonator was supplied by Diehl (Germany) and later on manufactured under licence in Switzerland. The explosive

1722-423: Is generally saturated with the maximum amount of TNT that will dissolve in water (about 150 parts per million (ppm).) However it has an indefinite composition that depends on the exact process; in particular, it may also contain cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX) if the plant uses TNT/RDX mixtures, or HMX if TNT/HMX is used. Red water (also known as "Sellite water") is produced during the process used to purify

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1804-408: Is known as red water and is a significant pollutant and waste product of TNT manufacture. Control of nitrogen oxides in feed nitric acid is very important because free nitrogen dioxide can result in oxidation of the methyl group of toluene. This reaction is highly exothermic and carries with it the risk of a runaway reaction leading to an explosion. In the laboratory, 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene

1886-451: Is likely to be lower "than TNT in subsurface environments where specific adsorption to clay minerals dominates the sorption process." Thus, the mobility of TNT and its transformation products are dependent on the characteristics of the sorbent. The mobility of TNT in groundwater and soil has been extrapolated from "sorption and desorption isotherm models determined with humic acids , in aquifer sediments, and soils". From these models, it

1968-515: Is listed as a possible human carcinogen , with carcinogenic effects demonstrated in animal experiments with rats, although effects upon humans so far amount to none (according to IRIS of March 15, 2000). Consumption of TNT produces red urine through the presence of breakdown products and not blood as sometimes believed. Some military testing grounds are contaminated with wastewater from munitions programs, including contamination of surface and subsurface waters which may be colored pink because of

2050-483: Is marked on the wide bottom portion of the lever "HG2 DM 82 CH". This practice grenade has a small simulation charge (flash/bang) that imitates a live grenade for training purposes. It is distinguishable from the wholly inert L110 by being a much lighter blue and is fitted with a distinctive gold/orange plastic cap and safety lever. The body of the L111A1 is made of steel, is covered in a textured plastic material and has

2132-408: Is occasionally used as a reagent in chemical synthesis , but it is best known as an explosive material with convenient handling properties. The explosive yield of TNT is considered to be the standard comparative convention of bombs and asteroid impacts. In chemistry , TNT is used to generate charge transfer salts . TNT was first synthesized in 1861 by German chemist Joseph Wilbrand and

2214-410: Is one containing 2 grams of a mixture of 80 percent mercury fulminate and 20 percent potassium chlorate, or a blasting cap of equivalent strength. An equivalent strength cap comprises 0.40-0.45 grams of PETN base charge pressed in an aluminum shell with bottom thickness not to exceed to 0.03 of an inch, to a specific gravity of not less than 1.4 g/cc, and primed with standard weights of primer depending on

2296-403: Is one of the most commonly used explosives for military, industrial, and mining applications. TNT has been used in conjunction with hydraulic fracturing (popularly known as fracking), a process used to acquire oil and gas from shale formations. The technique involves displacing and detonating nitroglycerin in hydraulically induced fractures followed by wellbore shots using pelletized TNT. TNT

2378-404: Is predicted that TNT has a low retention and transports readily in the environment. Compared to other explosives, TNT has a higher association constant with soil, meaning it adheres more with soil than with water. Conversely, other explosives, such as RDX and HMX with low association constants (ranging from 0.06 to 7.3 L/kg and 0 to 1.6 L/kg respectively) can move more rapidly in water. TNT

2460-427: Is produced by a two-step process. A nitrating mixture of concentrated nitric and sulfuric acids is used to nitrate toluene to a mixture of mono- and di-nitrotoluene isomers, with careful cooling to maintain temperature. The nitrated toluenes are then separated, washed with dilute sodium bicarbonate to remove oxides of nitrogen, and then carefully nitrated with a mixture of fuming nitric acid and sulfuric acid. TNT

2542-441: Is required, specifically in the implosion charges in nuclear weapons , exploding-bridgewire detonators are employed. The initial shock wave is created by vaporizing a length of a thin wire by an electric discharge . A new development is a slapper detonator , which uses thin plates accelerated by an electrically exploded wire or foil to deliver the initial shock. It is in use in some modern weapons systems. A variant of this concept

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2624-817: Is still used sometimes, but very rarely due to its high price. It is possible to construct a Non Primary Explosive Detonator (NPED) in which the primary explosive is replaced by a flammable but non-explosive mixture that propagates a shock wave along a tube into the secondary explosive. NPEDs are harder to accidentally trigger by shock and can avoid the use of lead. As secondary "base" or "output" explosive, TNT or tetryl are typically found in military detonators and PETN in commercial detonators. While detonators make explosive handling safer, they are hazardous to handle since, despite their small size, they contain enough explosive to injure people; untrained personnel might not recognize them as explosives or wrongly deem them not dangerous due to their appearance and handle them without

2706-529: Is the British designation for the HG 85. It differs from the HG 85 in that it has a special safety clip (matte black in color, which is similar to the safety clip on the American M67 grenade . The L109 is deep bronze green in color with golden yellow stenciling, and a rough exterior comparable to light sandpaper, and a yellow band around the top bushing, and weighs 465 g (16.4 oz). Markings give

2788-400: Is used as a reference point for many other explosives, including nuclear weapons, as their energy content is measured in equivalent tonnes (metric tons, t) of TNT. The energy used by NIST to define the equivalent is 4.184 GJ /t. For safety assessments, it has been stated that the detonation of TNT, depending on circumstances, can release 2.673–6.702 GJ/t. The heat of combustion however

2870-437: Is used in mining operations, when the foil is exploded by a laser pulse delivered to the foil by optical fiber . A non-electric detonator is a shock tube detonator designed to initiate explosions, generally for the purpose of demolition of buildings and for use in the blasting of rock in mines and quarries. Instead of electric wires, a hollow plastic tube delivers the firing impulse to the detonator, making it immune to most of

2952-454: Is usually considered more problematic, as TNT has very low soil mobility. Red water is significantly more toxic and as such it has always been considered hazardous waste. It has traditionally been disposed of by evaporation to dryness (as the toxic components are not volatile), followed by incineration. Much research has been conducted to develop better disposal processes. Because of its suitability in construction and demolition, TNT has become

3034-493: Is valued partly because of its insensitivity to shock and friction, with reduced risk of accidental detonation compared to more sensitive explosives such as nitroglycerin . TNT melts at 80 °C (176 °F), far below the temperature at which it will spontaneously detonate, allowing it to be poured or safely combined with other explosives. TNT neither absorbs nor dissolves in water, which allows it to be used effectively in wet environments. To detonate, TNT must be triggered by

3116-543: The Indian Institutes of Technology using noble-metal quantum clusters could detect TNT at the sub- zeptomolar (10 mol/m ) level. TNT is poisonous, and skin contact can cause skin irritation, causing the skin to turn a bright yellow-orange color. During the First World War , female munition workers who handled the chemical found that their skin turned bright yellow, which resulted in their acquiring

3198-488: The primary explosive . Around the turn of the century performance was enhanced in the Smith-Gardiner blasting cap by the addition of 10-20% potassium chlorate . This compound was superseded by others: lead azide , lead styphnate , some aluminium , or other materials such as DDNP ( diazo dinitro phenol ) to reduce the amount of lead emitted into the atmosphere by mining and quarrying operations. They also often use

3280-475: The steric hindrance of the NO 2 group in the ortho position . Research has shown that in freshwater environments, with high abundances of Ca , the adsorption of TNT and its transformation products to soils and sediments may be lower than observed in a saline environment, dominated by K and Na . Therefore, when considering the adsorption of TNT, the type of soil or sediment and the ionic composition and strength of

3362-527: The 20th century amatol , a mixture of TNT with ammonium nitrate , was a widely used military explosive. TNT can be detonated with a high velocity initiator or by efficient concussion. For many years, TNT used to be the reference point for the Figure of Insensitivity . TNT had a rating of exactly 100 on the "F of I" scale. The reference has since been changed to a more sensitive explosive called RDX , which has an F of I rating of 80. The energy density of TNT

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3444-597: The Gardner and Smith caps. Smith also invented the first satisfactory portable power supply for igniting blasting caps : a high-voltage magneto that was driven by a rack and pinion , which in turn was driven by a T-handle that was pushed downwards. Electric match caps were developed in the early 1900s in Germany, and spread to the US in the 1950s when ICI International purchased Atlas Powder Co. These match caps have become

3526-450: The HG 85, and painted a coarse black. They are stamped "EXPLOSIV". They function in the same way as the HG 85. Due to the substantial explosive charge they are dangerous. The grenade housing, especially the fuze block, causes some fragmentation. Initial training in the Swiss Army is done with a Markier Handgranate 85. It is equal in size and shape to the HG 85, but contains no explosive charge. A small bang charge can be inserted by unscrewing

3608-493: The Italians Volta and Cavallo. Hare constructed his blasting cap by passing a multistrand wire through a charge of gunpowder inside a tin tube; he had cut all but one fine strand of the multistrand wire so that the fine strand would serve as the hot bridgewire. When a strong current from a large battery (which he called a "deflagrator" or "calorimotor") was passed through the fine strand, it became incandescent and ignited

3690-547: The Swedish company Nitro Nobel in the 1960s and 1970s, and launched to the demolitions market in 1973. In civil mining, electronic detonators have a better precision for delays. Electronic detonators are designed to provide the precise control necessary to produce accurate and consistent blasting results in a variety of blasting applications in the mining, quarrying, and construction industries. Electronic detonators may be programmed in millisecond or sub-millisecond increments using

3772-495: The Swiss Army in 1985. It is also used in some other European armies and also in the Middle and Far East. TNT Trinitrotoluene ( / ˌ t r aɪ ˌ n aɪ t r oʊ ˈ t ɒ lj u iː n / ), more commonly known as TNT (and more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene , and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene ), is a chemical compound with the formula C 6 H 2 (NO 2 ) 3 CH 3 . TNT

3854-553: The Swiss Army. It is the same size and shape as a real HG 85, but with no moving parts. It is produced as a solid polymer block and painted bright orange, for easy recovery in the field. The first picture link below shows both Manip and EUHG 85. In September 2000, a six-year contract with Swiss Ammunition Enterprise Corporation (a RUAG subsidiary) was announced, committing the UK to purchase around 363,000 grenades for combat and live training, first deliveries scheduled for March 2001. The L109

3936-479: The bridgewire, but it cannot detonate the initiator explosive without the full high-voltage high-current charge passing through the bridgewire. EBW detonators are used in many civilian applications where radio signals, static electricity, or other electrical hazards might cause accidents with conventional electric detonators. Exploding foil initiators (EFI), also known as Slapper detonators are an improvement on EBW detonators. Slappers, instead of directly using

4018-407: The charge of gunpowder. In 1863, Alfred Nobel realized that although nitroglycerin could not be detonated by a fuse, it could be detonated by the explosion of a small charge of gunpowder, which in turn was ignited by a fuse. Within a year, he was adding mercury fulminate to the gunpowder charges of his detonators, and by 1867 he was using small copper capsules of mercury fulminate, triggered by

4100-405: The crude TNT. It has a complex composition containing more than a dozen aromatic compounds, but the principal components are inorganic salts ( sodium sulfate , sodium sulfite , sodium nitrite and sodium nitrate ) and sulfonated nitroaromatics . Pink and red water are colorless at the time of generation; the color is produced by photolytic reactions under the influence of sunlight. Despite

4182-438: The delay pellet. The heat of the burning delay pellet melts solder holding a retaining ring, allowing the detonator to move under the influence of a spring from the safe to armed position. The delay pellet continues to burn and after between 3 and 4 seconds burns out and produces a flash that forces aside a flap valve allowing ignition. When the flash reaches the detonator this initiates a booster charge which in turn initiates

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4264-432: The designation "GREN HAND HE L109A1", a manufacturer marking "SM" meaning "Swiss Munitions", and a lot number. (Markings on the safety lever give the designation and lot number of the fuze.) Once the safety pin is pulled the grenade is armed, but so long as the fly-off lever is kept depressed while the grenade is held (and the grenade can be held indefinitely with the pin out) it can be safely returned to storage so long as

4346-648: The exploding foil to detonate the initiator explosive, use the electrical vaporization of the foil to drive a small circle of insulating material such as PET film or kapton down a circular hole in an additional disc of insulating material. At the far end of that hole is a pellet of high-density secondary explosive. Slapper detonators omit the low-density initiating explosive used in EBW designs and they require much greater energy density than EBW detonators to function, making them inherently safer. Laser initiation of explosives, propellants or pyrotechnics has been attempted in three different ways, (1) direct interaction with

4428-516: The exudated liquid into the fuze screw thread can form fire channels , increasing the risk of accidental detonation. Fuze malfunction can also result from the liquid migrating into the fuze mechanism. Calcium silicate is mixed with TNT to mitigate the tendency towards exudation. Pink water and red water are two distinct types of wastewater related to trinitrotoluene. Pink water is produced from equipment washing processes after munitions filling or demilitarization operations, and as such

4510-405: The fly-off safety lever is still in the closed position and the safety pin reinserted. However, if thrown – or the lever allowed to rise – the protective plastic cover falls away and the striker, under pressure of the striker spring, begins to rotate on its axis. This causes the safety lever to be thrown clear, the striker continues to rotate until it hits the percussion cap , which fires and ignites

4592-428: The fuse must be inserted and then crimped into place by crushing the base of the cap around the fuse. If the tool used to crimp the cap is used too close to the explosives, the primary explosive compound can detonate during crimping. A common hazardous practice is crimping caps with one's teeth; an accidental detonation can cause serious injury to the mouth. Fuse type blasting caps are still in active use today. They are

4674-432: The ground water are important factors. The association constants for TNT and its degradation products with clays have been determined. Clay minerals have a significant effect on the adsorption of energetic compounds. Soil properties, such as organic carbon content and cation exchange capacity have significant impacts on the adsorption coefficients. Additional studies have shown that the mobility of TNT degradation products

4756-445: The hazards associated with stray electric current. It consists of a small diameter, three-layer plastic tube coated on the innermost wall with a reactive explosive compound, which, when ignited, propagates a low energy signal, similar to a dust explosion. The reaction travels at approximately 6,500 ft/s (2,000 m/s) along the length of the tubing with minimal disturbance outside of the tube. Non-electric detonators were invented by

4838-432: The main explosive filling. The L110 (Drill Grenade) is an entirely inert (no explosive content) version of the L109. Identical in size, weight and shape, as the live grenade and is used for training purposes, specifically correct handling and throwing. It can be easily distinguished from the live grenade as it is dark blue with white markings (see below). The body is solid aluminum with a textured plastic coating made in

4920-404: The manufacturer. [1] The oldest and simplest type of cap, fuse caps are a metal cylinder, closed at one end. From the open end inwards, there is first an empty space into which a pyrotechnic fuse is inserted and crimped, then a pyrotechnic ignition mix, a primary explosive , and then the main detonating explosive charge. The primary hazard of pyrotechnic blasting caps is that for proper usage,

5002-546: The most widely used explosive and thus its toxicity is the most characterized and reported. Residual TNT from manufacture, storage, and use can pollute water, soil, the atmosphere , and the biosphere . The concentration of TNT in contaminated soil can reach 50 g/kg of soil, where the highest concentrations can be found on or near the surface. In September 2001, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) declared TNT

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5084-472: The names, red and pink water are not necessarily different shades; the color depends mainly on the duration of solar exposure. If exposed long enough, "pink" water may turn various shades of pink, red, rusty orange, or black. Because of the toxicity of TNT, the discharge of pink water to the environment has been prohibited in the US and many other countries for decades, but ground contamination may exist in very old plants. However, RDX and tetryl contamination

5166-400: The nickname " canary girls " or simply "canaries". People exposed to TNT over a prolonged period tend to experience anemia and abnormal liver functions. Blood and liver effects, spleen enlargement and other harmful effects on the immune system have also been found in animals that ingested or breathed trinitrotoluene. There is evidence that TNT adversely affects male fertility . TNT

5248-514: The nitro functional groups and soil colloids. The number of functional groups on TNT influences the ability to adsorb into soil. Adsorption coefficient values have been shown to increase with an increase in the number of amino groups. Thus, adsorption of the TNT decomposition product 2,4-diamino-6-nitrotoluene (2,4-DANT) was greater than that for 4-amino-2,6-dinitrotoluene (4-ADNT), which was greater than that for TNT. Lower adsorption coefficients for 2,6-DNT compared to 2,4-DNT can be attributed to

5330-455: The photolysis of TNT has been seen due to the color change to pink of TNT-containing wastewaters when exposed to sunlight. Photolysis is more rapid in river water than in distilled water. Ultimately, photolysis affects the fate of TNT primarily in the aquatic environment but could also affect the fate of TNT in soil when the soil surface is exposed to sunlight. The ligninolytic physiological phase and manganese peroxidase system of fungi can cause

5412-517: The plastic cover is very similar in appearance to the American fuze mechanisms. Internally there is an extension on the striker to allow it to be re-cocked during training and there is a leaf spring safety that clips around the safety lever and neck of the grenade preventing the lever from rotating even if the safety pin is pulled. The markings are 'GREN HAND INERT DRILL L110A1' and a manufacturers marking "SM" meaning Swiss Munitions. The fuze mechanism

5494-680: The predominant world standard cap type. The need for detonators such as blasting caps came from the development of safer secondary and tertiary explosives . Secondary and tertiary explosives are typically initiated by an explosives train starting with the detonator. For safety, detonators and the main explosive device are typically only joined just before use. A detonator is usually a multi stage device, with three parts: Explosives commonly used as primary in detonators include lead azide , lead styphnate , tetryl , and DDNP . Early blasting caps also used silver fulminate, but it has been replaced with cheaper and safer primary explosives. Silver azide

5576-409: The presence of TNT. Such contamination, called "pink water", may be difficult and expensive to remedy . TNT is prone to exudation of dinitrotoluenes and other isomers of trinitrotoluene when projectiles containing TNT are stored at higher temperatures in warmer climates. Exudation of impurities leads to formation of pores and cracks (which in turn cause increased shock sensitivity). Migration of

5658-542: The reaction plus some of the reactions and The reaction is exothermic but has a high activation energy in the gas phase (~62 kcal/mol). The condensed phases (solid or liquid) show markedly lower activation energies of roughly 35 kcal/mol due to unique bimolecular decomposition routes at elevated densities. Because of the production of carbon , TNT explosions have a sooty appearance. Because TNT has an excess of carbon, explosive mixtures with oxygen-rich compounds can yield more energy per kilogram than TNT alone. During

5740-766: The required care. Ordinary detonators usually take the form of ignition-based explosives. While they are mainly used in commercial operations, ordinary detonators are still used in military operations. This form of detonator is most commonly initiated using a safety fuse , and used in non time-critical detonations e.g. conventional munitions disposal . Well known detonators are lead azide [Pb(N 3 ) 2 ], silver azide [AgN 3 ] and mercury fulminate [Hg(ONC) 2 ]. There are three categories of electrical detonators: instantaneous electrical detonators (IED), short period delay detonators (SPD) and long period delay detonators (LPD). SPDs are measured in milliseconds and LPDs are measured in seconds. In situations where nanosecond accuracy

5822-466: The rest of the cap and only assembled at the end of the process. Match type caps are now the most common type found worldwide. The exploding-bridgewire detonator was invented in the 1940s as part of the Manhattan Project to develop nuclear weapons. The design goal was to produce a detonator which functioned very rapidly and predictably). Both Match and Solid Pack type electric caps take

5904-460: The safest type to use around certain types of electromagnetic interference, and they have a built in time delay as the fuse burns down. Solid pack electric blasting caps use a thin bridgewire in direct contact (hence solid pack) with a primary explosive, which is heated by electric current and causes the detonation of the primary explosive. That primary explosive then detonates a larger charge of secondary explosive. Some solid pack fuses incorporate

5986-417: The same form as the live grenade, the textured coating ensuring a good gripping surface. A hole drilled up from the bottom indicates an empty store as well as ensuring the drill grenade is of the same weight as a live grenade. A bushing on top of the grenade has a dummy fuze mechanism permanently attached with a slot for the pull ring to clip into to prevent it being accidentally pulled. The fuze mechanism, under

6068-647: The ship. The British started replacing Lyddite with TNT in 1907. The United States Navy continued filling armour-piercing shells with explosive D after some other nations had switched to TNT, but began filling naval mines , bombs , depth charges , and torpedo warheads with burster charges of crude grade B TNT with the color of brown sugar and requiring an explosive booster charge of granular crystallized grade A TNT for detonation. High-explosive shells were filled with grade A TNT, which became preferred for other uses as industrial chemical capacity became available for removing xylene and similar hydrocarbons from

6150-518: The toluene feedstock and other nitrotoluene isomer byproducts from the nitrating reactions. In industry, TNT is produced in a three-step process. First, toluene is nitrated with a mixture of sulfuric and nitric acid to produce mononitrotoluene (MNT). The MNT is separated and then renitrated to dinitrotoluene (DNT). In the final step, the DNT is nitrated to trinitrotoluene (TNT) using an anhydrous mixture of nitric acid and oleum . Nitric acid

6232-472: The two monoamino transformation products, 2-ADNT and 4-ADNT, is energetically favored, and therefore is observed in contaminated soils and ground water. The diamino products are energetically less favorable, and even less likely are the triamino products. The transformation of TNT is significantly enhanced under anaerobic conditions as well as under highly reducing conditions. TNT transformations in soils can occur both biologically and abiotically. Photolysis

6314-435: The upper part (where the fuze and lever are). Releasing the lever ("spoon") activates a striker that fires the charge to produce a bang. This is used for training purposes especially when there is OpFor to simulate an explosion but not endanger anyone. The Mark HG 85 can be recovered and reloaded with another banger. The Manip HG (for manipulation) is used for learning the basic movements and practicing throwing hand grenades in

6396-486: The wire actually vaporizes and explodes due to electric resistance heating. That electrically-driven explosion causes the low-density initiating explosive (usually PETN ) to detonate, which in turn detonates a higher density secondary explosive (typically RDX or HMX) in many EBW designs. In addition to firing very quickly when properly initiated, EBW detonators are much safer than blasting caps from stray static electricity and other electric current. Enough current will melt

6478-515: The word 'PRACTICE' embossed near the top of the body, near a top portion which is larger than the bushing on the live grenade. Like the L110 there is a large aperture in the bottom of the grenade which demonstrates it is not a live grenade, but in the L111A this aperture allow gas from the practice fuse to escape. Consisting of two parts, a grey reusable striker mechanism and an L162 practice fuse (which has

6560-469: Was not considered an explosive for the purposes of manufacture and storage. The German armed forces adopted it as a filling for artillery shells in 1902. TNT-filled armour-piercing shells would explode after they had penetrated the armour of British capital ships , whereas the British Lyddite -filled shells tended to explode upon striking armour, thus expending much of their energy outside

6642-431: Was originally used as a yellow dye. Its potential as an explosive was not recognized for three decades, mainly because it was so much less sensitive than other explosives known at the time. Its explosive properties were discovered in 1891 by another German chemist, Carl Häussermann. TNT can be safely poured when liquid into shell cases, and is so insensitive that in 1910 it was exempted from the UK's Explosives Act 1875 and

6724-467: Was supplied from Germany. The grenade is spherical with a bushing on the top threaded internally to accept the DM 82 CH fuze mechanism. Due to its specially constructed fuze and packaging, the grenade is considered very secure. It is designed to be effective against opponents wearing body armor, up to 20 layers of Kevlar and 1.6 mm (0.063 in) of titanium . A supplementary spring steel safety clip

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