A method was patented by Gruson in Germany of filling a shell with the two harmless constituents of an explosive and having them unite and explode by means of a fulminate fuse on striking an object.
Fulminate of mercury has been found most serviceable for the latter purpose.
At first the mixture blackens from the separation of mercury, but this soon vanishes, and is succeeded by crystalline flocks of mercury fulminatewhich fall to the bottom of the vessel.
Fulminate should be kept, if possible, in a damp state.
The solvent used is acetone, and the quantity of fulminate is between 75 to 85 per cent.
While the fulminate is moist with alcohol, the gun-cotton and chlorate mixture is added, and well mixed with it.
The water in which the fulminate is usually stored is first drained off, and replaced by displacement by methyl-alcohol.
The mercuryfulminate is then crystallised from hot water.
Pure mercury fulminate may be kept an indefinite length of time.
A fulminate detonator produces the best explosive effect with tri-nitro-toluene.
The product thus formed is a kind of blasting gelatine, and should be in a pasty condition, in order that it may be mixed with fulminate of mercury.
On adding copper or zinc to a hot saturated solution of the salt, fulminate of copper or zinc is formed.
Any excess of acid in the one which has received the fulminate will therefore be due to the formic acid generated from the fulminate.
Digest copper (in powder or filings) with fulminate of mercury or of silver, and a little water.
Two very distinct compounds are known by this name, the one containing oxide of silver and ammonia, and the other being a true fulminate of silver.
Fulminate of mercury should only be dried in small parcels at a time, and these should be placed at a distance from each other.
This dissolves in 36 parts of boiling water, but the solution deposits the greater portion of the fulminate as it cools.
It greatly resembles fulminate of silver in its appearance and general properties.
Fulminate of gold, an explosive compound of gold; -- called also fulminating gold, and aurum fulminans.
If those who fulminate against the Church's method, and sneer at the members of the Church who follow it, as dupes and fools, could understand that it is discipline that purifies and exalts, they would sneer no longer.
Orvietto, and proceeding to the high altar, took the bible in his hand, and, after setting before the awestruck assembly the guilt of the culprit, proceeded thus to fulminate his anathema against the assassin.
History however, does not bear out this wonderful tale of Xiphilinus, for the name fulminate is known, from inscriptions, to have been given to the twelfth legion as early as the reign of Augustus.
When they had prayed, God immediately smote the enemy with lightning, but refreshed the Roman army by a copious rain, upon which Marcus published a decree, in which he complimented the Christian legion and bestowed the namefulminate upon it.
On the nipple was placed the copper cap containing the detonating composition, now made of three parts of chlorate of potash, two of fulminate of mercury and one of powdered glass.
Early attempts to produce percussion fuzes were unsuccessful, but the discovery of fulminate of mercury in 1799 finally afforded the means of attaining this object.
Chemistry advances, like the isolation of mercury fulminatein 1800, led to the invention of the percussion cap and other primers.
There were on the bench as many as half-a-dozen small squares of glass, each with its little pile of fulminate upon it.
The bag of dry fulminate had, when he procured it, been merely set in a pail of water for a few minutes, and only long enough to wet a thin stratum of the explosive, leaving the whole interior perfectly dry.
It is surely a wonder that the drunken man had not exploded this mass of dryfulminate in the rough handling he had given it.
As this material, like the fulminate of mercury, could not be transported by either freight or express, it was necessary to go and bring it over by horse and wagon, or by automobile.
One day his master gave him about half a pound of this fulminate compound.
It came about that one day I was in need of fulminate of mercury.
Had he fallen with the bag, he must almost certainly have caused an explosion by the shock of the impact of the fulminate against the ground.
The compound consisted offulminate of mercury with gelatinated guncotton and nitroglycerin.
We were proceeding very cautiously, when all at once the scoop toppled, and an iron weight fell, striking within an eighth of an inch of one of the pieces of glass on which was fulminate of mercury.
Two of my assistants and myself were weighing out small batches of fulminate of mercury from a ten-pound jar.
Owing to my loss of sleep the night before, my mind was not so alert as usual, and I forgot to lay aside the remaining piece of fulminate compound, but, instead, held it in my left hand.
The wafer is composed of a cap of cartridge-paper, enclosing a layer of fulminate of mercury combined with a small quantity of mealed powder.
The first trials of the new fulminate were made in the presence of Yakub, and were most successful; the invention proved of the greatest use to the Khalifa.
The principal want was caps for the Remington cartridges, for, though there were quantities of empty cases there was scarcely any fulminate left.
In the mining and other industries the fulminate is used in smaller quantities and it is generally mixed with potassium chlorate, the mixture being compressed in small copper cases and sold as blasting caps.
Mercury fulminate is made by dissolving mercury in nitric acid and pouring the solution thus produced into alcohol, when a violent reaction takes place and the fulminate is deposited as a crystalline gray powder.
Mercury fulminate is so employed because it is the most violent of all explosives in common use, and exerts a pressure of forty-eight thousand atmospheres when fired in contact.
He then ignited the fulminate by a blow on the punch with the hammer, but not a grain of the gunpowder was lighted, though it was blown about in all directions.
The flame of the fulminate is therefore hazardous, but being so very ethereal, it requires for making primes, an admixture of some combustible matter, as a little gunpowder, to condense or modify the flame.
I have stated that my maximum product of fulminate from 100 grs.
May the gas or vapour produced by the inflammation of the fulminate of mercury, when combined with a portion of gunpowder, be considered in its nature corrosive of iron or brass?
What proportions of mercury, with nitric acid and alcohol of certain strengths, will yield the greatest quantity of pure fulminate of mercury?
Fulminate of mercury is obtained in white grains, or short needles, of a silky lustre, which become gray upon exposure to light, and detonate either by a blow or at a heat under 370 deg.
Fulminate of mercury moistened upon copper is speedily decomposed by the superior affinity of the copper over mercury, for oxygen and fulminic acid.
I have suggested to Mr. Lovell, of Waltham Abbey works, that the fulminate may be probably diluted most advantageously with spirit varnish made of a proper consistence by dissolving sandarach in alcohol.
If a train of fulminate of mercury be spread upon a piece of paper, covered with some loose gunpowder, in exploding the former the latter will not be kindled, but merely scattered.
The fulminate being thus dried, is to be put up in paper parcels of about 100 grains each; the whole of which may be afterwards packed away in a tight box, or a bottle with a cork stopper.
This stream of liquid metal closes an electric circuit, so that an electric current passes through a piece of platinum wire embedded in fulminate and heats it red-hot, with obvious results.
A slight flash from the fulminate followed, and then the meteorite disappeared in a colorless gas.
And he cut the cement carefully away and disclosed the little disc of fulminate and the white explosive surrounding it.
We followed the crook, Craig still holding the deadly box of fulminate of mercury carefully balanced so that if anyone shot him from a hiding place it would drop.
He calmly sat down in an arm chair, leaning back as he carefully balanced the deadly little box of fulminate of mercury on his knee.
On dissecting the cartridge, it was found that the fulminate had been omitted from the particular part of the rim on which the trigger had fallen.
It's a very small fulminate of mercury shell, and never held lead.
Then, too, there was the fulminate of mercury shell.
The flash started the fulminate of mercury in the cap.
This flare was communicated to the percussion cap, or fulminate of mercury, at the base of the cartridge.
These were then capped with fulminateof mercury caps, and Harry climbed the rope to the surface of the narrow gully with the wires which were to carry the explosive spark.
Caps of fulminate of mercury were then affixed to the explosive and wires led from it to the battery boxes.
