MORE DEADLY THAN DYNAMITE.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 12248, 11 January 1902, Page 8

MORE DEADLY THAN DYNAMITE.

NEW AMKIUCAX EXPLOSIVE. One of thp first scientific sensations ot the new century is the adoption by tho United States Government of a high explosive ot which wonderful and well-verified stories arc told. Mr Hudson Maxim tells something of the marvels of his invention. Ho claims that it is "50 per cent, more powerful than ordinary dynamito, and somewhat more powerful than pure nitroglycerine." Among commercial high explosives, ho considers that it is equalled only in shattering forco by nitro-gclatino and pure picric acid. It has other rcmnrsoblo characteristics. ".Notwithstanding its high explosive vahio, Maximite (as the now product is called) is an exceedingly insensible compound. It is unaffected by shock, and will not explode from ignition even it a man of il Iμ stirred with a white-hot iron. When heated in an open vessel, this explosive will evaporate like water, which serve* To prevent ils temperature from mounting to the explosion point. Shells arc filled with Maximite by the simple process of melting and pouring. The explosive cools in a dense and solid mass, and in tho act expands like sulphur or like water in freezing, which causes it to adhere firmly to tho walls of the projectile, and prevents tho formation of air spaces in tho charge." Tliis is the explosive which has been . adopted by the United Stales Government, after an exhaustive series of trials, as a ; bursting charge for shells. After its insensibility and keeping qualities had been estab- . lished other tests wore applied. A 12- . inch forged ste.d armour-piercing projectile wns filled with Maximite, buried deep in sand, and exploded with a powerful detona- > tor. On sifting the rand about 7000 frag- • wonts were recovered, and it is estimated ; that, if all the small pieces which were lost ) or escaped attention had been secured and • counted, there would have been at least ; 10,000. Many picric acid compounds have i been tested by foreign Governments as : bursting charges for projectiles with vary- • ing success, and picric acid, pure and simple, , fused and cast into shells, has been very t largely used. The names lyddite, melinite, ■ etc., have been variously applied to experi- ■ mental compounds cf nicric acid, as well as ■ to the ipuro article. The English, French, - Russian, and Japanese Government;, and 5 probably other.", have adopted either picric > acid or some compound of that substance, ' None of these explosives, however, have ' proved entirely satisfactory, owing either to ' chemical instability of over-sensitiveness. ' Maximite. owing to its perfect chemical ' stability, low fusion point, highly insensitive '* character and tremendous shattering power, " coupled with the Frankfoi'd Aisonal'detonat- ■ in? fuse, give* tho United States Government a great advantage over what has been accomplished abroad,"