EXPLOSIVES

Griffin

Essential Questions
How is physical evidence at the scene of a suspected arson or
explosion collected?
How are laboratory procedures used to detect and identify
hydrocarbon and explosive residues?
How are explosives classified?
What are some common commercial, homemade, and military
explosives?

Vocabulary
Detonate
Explosion
Explosive
Activation Energy
Deflagration

What is an explosion?
An explosion is the sudden,
violent release of energy that
occurs due to the burning of
a mixture of fuel and oxygen
to cause an internalcombustion reaction.
Basically, an explosion is the
build-up and sudden, violent
release of built up pressure.

What is an explosive?
Explosives are substances that
undergo rapid oxidation
reactions with the production of
large quantities of gases.
The speed at which explosives
decompose, or undergo
deflagration, is how they are
classified in the main groups of
LOW and HIGH.

Low Explosives
Black powder is a mixture
of potassium/sodium
nitrate, charcoal, and
sulfur.
Smokeless powder
consists of nitrated cotton
(nitrocellulose) or
nitroglycerin and
nitrocellulose.

Video

High Explosives
Primary explosives are
very sensitive to heat,
shock, or friction and are
most commonly used to
detonate other explosives.
Examples: DDNP and Lead
azide

DDNP
Diazodinitrophenol is
an acid derivative.
It is made up of
picramic acid,
sodium/potassium
nitrate, and dilute
hydrochloric or
sulfuric acid.
First prepared by Dr.
Griess in 1858.

Lead azide
Used in grenades as the
detonator.

High Explosives
Secondary explosives are
relatively insensitive to
heat, shock, or friction and
will burn rather than
detonate if ignited in small
quantities.
Examples: Dynamite, TNT
(trinitrotoluene), PETN, and
RDX
Must be detonated by a
primary explosive.

Diagram of
dynamite.
A. Sawdust soaked in
nitroglycerin.
B. Protective coating
surrounding the
explosive material.
C. Blasting cap.
D. Electrical cable (or
fuse) connected to
the blasting cap.

Dynamite
Dynamite is an explosive
material based on
nitroglycerin. It was initially
made using diatomaceous
earth or another absorbent
substance such as powdered
shells, clay, sawdust, or wood
pulp.
Dynamite was invented by the
Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel
1867.

RDX
Research Department explosives are
the most popular and powerful of the
military explosives, often encountered in
the form of pliable plastic known as C-4.
Named (C4) based on the Relative
Effectiveness of explosive.
Developed to be more powerful than TNT.

TATP
Triacetone triperoxide (TATP) is a
homemade explosive that has been
used by terrorist organizations.
TATP can be made by combining
acetone and peroxide in the
presence of an acid.
Its existence has led to the banning
of most liquids on commercial
aircraft.

PETN
Pentaerythritol tetranitrate, a
highly explosive organic compound
belonging to the same chemical
family as nitroglycerin and
nitrocellulose.
First created in 1894, and
introduced as a commercial
explosive.
Used in home-made explosives.

Fireworks!
A firework is a device
containing gunpowder and
other combustible
chemicals that causes a
spectacular explosion when
ignited.
Pyrotechnics is the art of
manufacturing or setting off
fireworks.

Detonate vs. Deflagrate?

Using your definitions of
deflagration and
detonate, explain the
differences between the
two terms in your
notebook. This should be 1
paragraph.

Poster Time!
Choose an explosive: Black powder, smokeless powder, DDNP, dynamite, TATP,
PETN, TNT, RDX, fireworks, etc.
Create a poster that explains:

Ingredients and/or chemical makeup of the explosive

Which explosive group does it belong to?
Picture/Drawing of explosive
Most common state used as explosive (liquid, gas, solid)
Is it commercial, military, or homemade? (Or all 3)
Interesting fact about explosive
Used by famous killers?
Where is it manufactured?

DUE
FRIDAY

Identification, Collection, and Analysis

The entire bomb site must be searched to recover any trace of
a detonating mechanism or any other item foreign to the
explosion site.
Objects, such as soil and other debris, located at or near the
origin of the explosion must be collected for laboratory
examination.
All collected material must be stored in sealed air-tight
containers.

Deadly Tianjin explosion

Chinese authorities
confirmed that deadly
sodium cyanide was
present at the blast site.
Pictured: soldiers of the
National Nuclear
Biochemical
Emergency rescue team
take debris samples
near the core area of
the explosion site in
Tianjin.

Identification, Collection, and Analysis

The Ion mobility Spectrometer is
used to screen objects for the
presence of explosive residues.
Preliminary identification of
explosive residues are made
based upon the time it takes for
the explosive gas to move through
the tube.

Identification, Collection, and Analysis

Debris collected at explosion scenes
will be:
Rinsed with organic solvents, such as
acetone to recover explosive residue.
(Explosive compounds dissolve easily in
it)
Examined with a microscope for small
particles
Analyzed with color tests, thin-layer
chromatography, infrared
spectrometry, x-ray diffraction, and gas
chromatography-mass spectrometry.

Bombs

Nuclear Bombs
Normal chemical explosions are different from
nuclear bombs in that they only use the electron
bonds for energy.
Nuclear bombs use the atomic binding force from
the center of the atom.
Nuclear bombs are thousands of times more
powerful than chemical bombs. The biggest
nuclear bomb ever made was equal to 50 million
tons of TNT!

Nuclear Fission and Fusion