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A saltpetre works or nitrary [1] is a place of production of potassium nitrate or saltpetre used primarily for the manufacture of gunpowder. The saltpeter occurs naturally in certain places like the "Caves of Salnitre" ( Collbató ) known since the Neolithic.
For instance, power grades of black powder, unsuitable for use in firearms but adequate for blasting rock in quarrying operations, are called blasting powder rather than gunpowder with standard proportions of 70% nitrate, 14% charcoal, and 16% sulfur; blasting powder may be made with the cheaper sodium nitrate substituted for potassium nitrate ...
An alternative way of producing potassium nitrate without a by-product of ammonia is to combine ammonium nitrate, found in instant ice packs, [30] and potassium chloride, easily obtained as a sodium-free salt substitute. NH 4 NO 3 + KCl → NH 4 Cl + KNO 3. Potassium nitrate can also be produced by neutralizing nitric acid with potassium ...
The Nitre and Mining Bureau is most known for their production of saltpeter (potassium nitrate) for the Confederacy. Because of the blockade of Southern ports, imported supplies of gunpowder and materials were kept away from the Confederacy, and had to be supplied within their own borders. Priority was given to the manufacture of gunpowder.
Although all firearm propellants are generally called powder, [1] the term gunpowder originally described mixtures of charcoal and sulfur with potassium nitrate as an oxidizing agent. [ 2 ] : 133, 137 By the 20th century these early propellants were largely replaced by smokeless powder of nitrocellulose or similarly nitrated organic compounds .
This composition, usually in a ratio of 5 parts potassium nitrate, to 3 parts aluminum powder, to 2 parts sulfur, is especially popular with hobbyists. It is not very quick-burning unless exceptionally fine ingredients are used. Although it incorporates sulfur, it is in fact fairly stable, sustaining multiple hits from a hammer onto a hard surface.
The exact formula of Phos-Chek is not public knowledge but the company has said in previous filings that the product is 80% water, 14% fertiliser-type salts, 6% colouring agents and corrosion ...
Smokeless powder is a type of propellant used in firearms and artillery that produces less smoke and less fouling when fired compared to black powder. Because of their similar use, both the original black powder formulation and the smokeless propellant which replaced it are commonly described as gunpowder.