Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 7
Liquid Explosive Mixtures
Liquid explosive mixtures are one of the most important liquid explosives developed
thus far [
1
]. Currently, they are widely used in various areas including manufac-
turing, mining, agriculture, and military. The mixture of nitric acid and aromatic
nitro compounds is the earliest liquid explosive mixture documented in the literature
[
2
]. Later on, the Maide Ang technology explosives that utilized potassium chlorate
as the oxidant were invented and extensively used in Germany, Poland, and Russia
during the World War I. In addition, La Stead liquid explosives composed of
nitrogen oxides and fuel oil were developed and broadly used in many kinds of
bombs [
3
]. Liquid explosives play important roles in combat
fields, for instance,
French researcher invented the Miro dynamite for bombs, which is a liquid explosive
composed of methyl nitrate and methanol [
4
]. In addition, liquid explosives con-
taining nitromethane and ammonium nitrate as well as the mixture of oxidizers and
fuels have been extensively used as warhead ammunitions [
5
]. Since late 1980s,
research on liquid explosives began to thrive all over the world [
6
]. Thickened nitrate
liquid explosives and their application technologies were successfully developed,
and they have been effectively employed in the
field of overload blasting in mine [
7
].
However, it is comparatively dif
cult for mining industry to use nitric acid-type
explosives, because they are generally corrosive and have strong odors. With further
research on nitric acid-type explosives, especially in the past decade, signi
cant
progress has been made to improve the corrosivity, development of thickeners and
adhesives, as well as compatibility. Therefore, this type of explosives are being used
as versatile temporary charge in combat
11
]. Imperial Chemical Industries
Co., Ltd. successfully developed blasting agents containing nitric acid, and the free
acid incorporated in the thickened liquid explosives can be well controlled, which
allows them to be employed as propellants, detergents, etchants, oil well treatment
agents, and so forth [
12
,
13
]. In addition, emulsion-type nitrate-based liquid
explosives were also reported [
14
,
15
]. Japan, the Czech Republic and other
countries had invented and manufactured insensitive nitrate liquid explosives in
succession [
16
]. Speci
fields [
8
-
cally, Japanese researchers developed a liquid explosive
composed of nitroglycerin and ethylene glycol dinitrate that are very insensitive to
transportation, storage, usage and disposal; scientists in the Czech Republic found
that adding polymers to nitroglycerine can produce insensitive colloidal liquid
