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Gunpowder is a low explosive: it does not detonate, but rather deflagrates (burns quickly). This is an advantage in a propellant device, where one does not desire a shock that would shatter the gun and potentially harm the operator; however, it is a drawback when an explosion is desired.
Earliest known written formula for gunpowder, from the Wujing Zongyao of 1044 AD.. Gunpowder is the first explosive to have been developed. Popularly listed as one of the "Four Great Inventions" of China, it was invented during the late Tang dynasty (9th century) while the earliest recorded chemical formula for gunpowder dates to the Song dynasty (11th century).
The earliest gunpowder recipe and primitive weaponry date to China's Song dynasty and the oldest extant guns appear in the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty of China. However, historian Tonio Andrade notes that there is a surprising scarcity of reliable evidence of firearms in Iran or Central Asia prior to the late 14th century.
It is the first safely manageable explosive stronger than gunpowder. [12] 1867 The use of ammonium nitrate in explosives is patented in Sweden. [13] 1875 Gelignite, the first plastic explosive, is invented by Alfred Nobel. [14] [13] 1884: Paul Marie Eugène Vieille creates Poudre B, the first practical smokeless powder. [6] 1891
It was later utilized as an explosive substance in cannons, fire-arrows, and other military weapons. During the Song and Yuan dynasties (960–1368), gunpowder was in high demand due to numerous battles and the development of mass industry. Gunpowder was invented in the 9th century by Chinese alchemists searching for an elixir of immortality. [19]
Tertiary explosives, also called blasting agents, are so insensitive to shock that they cannot be reliably detonated by practical quantities of primary explosive, and instead require an intermediate explosive booster of secondary explosive. These are often used for safety and the typically lower costs of material and handling.
Like modern gunpowder, cordite is classified as a low explosive because of its slow burning rates and consequently low brisance [not verified in body]. These produce a subsonic deflagration wave rather than the supersonic detonation wave produced by brisants, or high explosives [ not verified in body ] .
The gunpowder engine is based on many previous ideas and scientific discoveries, developed by multiple people independently. Early devices just aimed at lifting and/or holding weight (usually to study and demonstrate the physics), while engines aim at doing work continuously (usually with the intention of doing something useful).