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Nitroglycerin (NG) is a high explosive that is difficult to handle in its liquid form, where the entrapment of gaseous NG bubbles results in its high sensitivity to impact (<0.25 J). NG‐based materials are traditionally prepared by complex mixing processes where desensitisation is of major concern. Instead of using a mixing procedure here we demonstrate the successful synthesis of dynamite‐like materials by using a single step bottom‐up approach to form a polymeric host matrix (PM) for NG from a solution which contains the explosive and the matrix precursors. For this purpose, an epoxidized vegetable oil mixed with nitroglycerin (oil to NG mass ratio of 60/40) is polymerized at 100 °C for 30 h by using glutaric acid as crosslinking agent. No degradation of NG under these conditions is observed. The activation energy of NG desorption from the PM (51.9 kJ/mol) is of the same order of magnitude as the one reported in literature for a double‐base powder (81.9 kJ/mol). An accelerated NG desorption is observed as temperature increases. This can be attributed to a slow diffusion mechanism of the explosive from the volume to the surface of the material, where it evaporates. The ignition of NG/PM in air by an open flame leads to a self‐sustained combustion, in which a part of nitroglycerin decomposes in the polymer matrix. Conversely, NG/PM monolithic and granular loads are not ignited by the explosion of the primer in a 9 mm calibre casing. The shockwave released by a detonator on a small NG/PM cylindrical charge (≈1.5 g) does not detonate it, but only makes it deflagrate. Our results show that this novel single‐step synthesis of NG trapped in a polymeric matrix is a very effective approach for desensitizing it to any form of stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The detonation of explosives in the open air was studied, analyzing different amounts of explosives detonated at different distances, monitoring the overpressure or air blast wave generated with the aim of determining a model, which allows to establish safety zones. A series of tests measuring the air wave with different loads and sensors placed at various distances from the origin of the explosion were carried out. The work was focused on designing full-scale trials that allowed to develop a predictive empirical method based on the calculation model of the equivalent mass of TNT. A total of 18 different gelatinous dynamite charges, placing the sensor at six different distances from the origin of the explosion, produced a total of 90 tests measuring the air wave produced by the detonation of gelatinous dynamite. Later, the outdoor detonation of 10 TNT explosive charges was analyzed to extend the model and improve its scope. With all this, it has been possible to develop a predictive model that allows assessing the overpressure generated by the detonation of a TNT-equivalent explosive charge. The results are useful to predict the air blast wave in common open-air blasts, such as those carried out with shaped charges to demolish metallic structures. On the other hand, the results are also useful to determine the air blast wave overpressure in the case of large explosive charges detonated in the open air, such as accidental explosive detonation or terrorist bombs. It is important to point out the relevance of the results achieved after the detonation of large explosive charges (more than 80 kg) simulating a type of bomb frequently used by terrorists. Reproducing the explosion on a real scale, the results are fully representative of the overpressure produced by an explosion of these characteristics without the need of extrapolating the results of tests with small loads. In addition, the detonation was carried out with TNT, which can serve as a standard to compare with any other type of explosive. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we argue that the regulation of the explosives industry in Sweden between 1858 and 1948 can give a slightly different perspective on regulatory capture. In this case it was the upstart company, the Nobel Dynamite Company, and not the established explosives companies that in negotiation with the regulator succeeded in establishing new national regulations. Through three different cases we show that the method behind this successful capture was indirect and direct with a common trait of risk minimizing for the public that developed in cooperation with the regulator. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fishing using explosives is common in Tanzanian waters; it is considered to be more widely practised now than at any other point in history. Mwambao Coastal Community Network, a Tanzanian NGO carried out a multi-stakeholder consultation in April 2014 initiated through the concern of private investors and tourism operators. Consultations were held with villagers, fisheries officers, government officers, hoteliers, dive operators, fish processors, NGOs and other key individuals, and shed some light on key factors enabling this practice to flourish. Key areas identified for attention include engendering political will at all levels, upholding of the law through a non-corrupt enforcement and judicial system, and defining clear roles and responsibilities for monitoring and surveillance. The work identified other successful initiatives which have tackled this pervasive practice including projects that build local capacity for marine governance, villages that have declared themselves intolerant of blast-fishing, and private–public partnerships for patrol and protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents the development and use of industrial explosives and the means of priming in the ancient times until today. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article explores the association of dynamite violence to literary culture in the modern period in England. The author mentions that a historian wrote that dynamite and the anarchist were partners, to understand the cultural significance of one is permeate the world of the other. She points that the presence of dynamite made for complex, often flamboyant plots and styles and its effects on the body created exceptional challenges that literary works engaged and excluded. She adds that in many dynamite novels, they featured hyperbolic uses of the substance.

Ascanio Sobrero (1812.1888), initially educated as a physician, was one of the most accomplished Italian chemists of his time. He is particularly remembered for having discovered nitroglycerin, its explosive characteristics, and its use as a vasodilatant. Alfred Nobel would transform nitroglycerin into dynamite and give birth to the modern explosives industry. Sobrero did some important research on the products obtained by distillation of resins and essential oils; as a result of these he discovered pyrrole hydrate (sobrerol) that continues to be used today to treat bronchial diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on La Guardia-Pyke Bomb Carriers. The purpose of these carriers is to take a bomb from a congested area to a remote or suburban district and to do so in a manner which will protect the public and the police. With the construction adopted should the bomb explode enroute the explosive forces are reduced to a minimum by means of a triple air-cushioning effect produced by the baffle screens of woven steel cable. This construction allows for the expansion of the gases in event of explosion but at the same time retains the fragmentation of the bomb. On April 12, 1941, this carrier was taken to the testing ground and subjected to a series of severe tests. The first test consisted of exploding three sticks of 40% dynamite which were tied together and suspended in the center of the cradle. This resulted in no damage to either the cradle or the other covering of the bomb carrier. The second test doubled the charge of dynamite and caused slight damage to one of the I bolts holding the cradle shut.

The article reports on the dynamite explosion that killed four men in the U.S. Among the four men killed, two were members of the Industrial Workers of the World who were about to be tried at Tarrytown, New York for recent anti-Rockefeller demonstrations and a third was an active anarchist. The significant thing regarding the explosion was the fact that the men killed were engaged in making dynamite bombs.