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Plactic explosives in WWII. From 808 to C-4. notes to self: picture of 808 [] [] picture of C-4 [] []

find a way to get rid of the "you've opened a new tab" screen at home and replace it with my homepage. revise and condence notes look at these sites: [] History of plastic explosives [] History of plastic explosives from WWII to Symtex [] [] [] [] **notes:** **Plastic explosive** is a specialised form of explosive material. It is soft and hand malleable and may have the added benefit of being usable over a wider temperature range than pure explosive. One of the simplest plastic explosives was Nobel’s Explosive No. 808, also known as //Nobel 808,// developed by the British company Nobel Chemicals Ltd well before World War II. It had the appearance of green plasticine with a distinctive smell of almonds. During World War II it was extensively used by the British Special Operations Executive for sabotage missions. It is also the explosive used in HESH anti-tank shells. During and just after World War II a number of new RDX -based explosives were developed, including Compositions C, C2, and eventually C3. Together with RDX these incorporate various plasticisers to decrease sensitivity and make the composition plastic. Captured SOE-supplied Nobel 808 was the explosive used in the failed 20 July plot assass ination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944 C-4 notes: Just as with other explosives, you need to apply some energy to C-4 to kick off the chemical reaction. Because of the stabilizer elements, it takes a considerable shock to set off this reaction; lighting the C-4 with a match will just make it burn slowly, like a piece of wood (in Vietnam, soldiers actually burned C-4 as an improvised cooking fire). Even shooting the explosive with a rifle won't trigger the reaction. Only a **detonator**, or **blasting cap** will do the job properly. A detonator is just a smaller explosive that's relatively easy to set off. An electrical detonator, for example, uses a brief charge to set off a small amount of explosive material. When somebody triggers the detonator (by transmitting the charge through **detonator cord** to a **blasting cap**, for example), the explosion applies a powerful shock that triggers the C-4 explosive material. When the chemical reaction begins, the C-4 decomposes to release a variety of gases (notably, nitrogen and carbon oxides). The gases initially expand at about **26,400 feet per second** (8,050 meters per second), applying a huge amount of force to everything in the surrounding area. At this expansion rate, it is totally impossible to outrun the explosion like they do in dozens of action movies. To the observer, the explosion is nearly instantaneous -- one second, everything's normal, and the next it's totally destroyed. The explosion actually has **two phases**. The initial expansion inflicts most of the damage. It also creates a very low-pressure area around the explosion's origin -- the gases are moving outward so rapidly that they suck most of the gas out from the "middle" of the explosion. After the outward blast, gases rush back in to the partial vacuum, creating a second, less-destructive inward energy wave. C-4



Nobel 808

Works Cited

"Nobel's explosive No.808." //Grenades, Mines and Boobytraps//. N.p., n.d. Web. 28 Mar 2011. .

"Military-grade plastic explosives found in New York cemetery." //Daily Mail//. Daily Mail, 12/10/2010. Web. 28 Mar 2011. [].

"Explosives - Compositions." //GlobalSecurity.org//. N.p., 11-08-2006. Web. 21 Feb 2011. [].

Harris, Tom. "How C-4 Works." //HowStuffWorks//. HowStuffWorks, Inc., 20 6 2002. Web. 21 Feb 2011. []

"Plastic_explosive." //Dictionary.com//. Dictionary.com, LLC, 05 9 2008. Web. 21 Feb 2011. []

"Plastic Explosives." //Liberty References//. Liberty References, 2011. Web. 21 Feb 2011. [].

Syd Williams Mulkey 8th grade M/DD/YY Plastic Explosives

The plastic explosive is a form of moldabl e explosive that may be aplied to almost any surface. It is very powerful and has a benifit of being used over a larger temperature range. It apeared some time before WWII but was not widely used untill then. Since, then it has become a very popular military tool.

One of the simplest plastic explosives is Nobel’s Explosive No. 808. It was widely used in WWII (Captured SOE-supplied Nobel 808 was the explosive used in the failed 20 July plot assass ination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944 ). 808, as it was commenly refered to as, was also the main explosive used in HESH Anti-tank shells.Durring and right after WWII, many new plastic explosives were made including Compositions C, C2, and eventually C3. The chemical called RDX (Research Department Explosive) was used with many plasticisers to decrease sensitivity and make the composition plastic.

Today plastic explosives are used more and more by military and terrorists alike. One popular plastic explosive is C-4. Just like other explosives, some energy is needed to detonate it. That is where the blasting cap comes in. Shooting it will not work and it burns like wood (in Vietnam, soldiers actually burned C-4 as an improvised cooking fire). A blasting cap or detonator uses a smaller explosion to set off the bigger one. This is the exact science from //HowStuffWorks//.com; "An electrical detonator, for example, uses a brief charge to set off a small amount of explosive material. When somebody triggers the detonator (by transmitting the charge through detonator cord to a blasting cap, for example), the explosion applies a powerful shock that triggers the C-4 explosive material//."// That shock will, in turn, set off the rest of the explosive. But that is not all! What looks like demolition in a second is realy a 2 part explosion.

A C-4 explosion has 2 parts. Part 1: The inital explosion happens and nurmeorus gases decompose including nitrogen and carbon oxides. They expand at 26,400 feet per second, hitting objects with a imence amount of force. Part 2: All the gases are pushed outward because of the first explosion, but now they come rushing inward in a less destrutive seconed explosion. So it is sort of like a paddle ball. You hit it out and then it comes back to hit you in the face.

So, the plastic explosive has come a long way from 808. But it still retains it's basic properties: being moldable, being used over a wide range of temperatures, being apliable to any surface, and as safe to handle as one can get with a highly explosive device or material. It is, has been, and will be very useful in military operations throughout history. what it says is: charge demolition M112 with taggant (1-1/4 lbs comp C-4) MA-01E023-?02

[] []
 * chemical composition C3H6N6O6

Syd Williams Mulkey 8th grade 3/20/2011 Plastic Explosives

Plastic explosive is a form of moldable explosive that may be applied to almost any surface. It appeared some time before and during WWII mainly in the form of Nobel 808 but was not widely used until then. Since then it has become a very popular military tool. One of the most popular plastic explosives today is C-4. Plastic explosives are very powerful and have a benefit of being used over a larger temperature range making it a useful tool for military operations through history.

One of the simplest plastic explosives was invented by Alfred Nobel and developed by the British company Nobel Chemicals Ltd well before World War II it is Nobel’s Explosive No. 808. It was widely used in WWII, some Captured SOE-supplied Nobel 808 was the explosive used in the failed 20 July plot assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944. “808”, as it was commonly referred to as, was also the main explosive used in HESH Anti-tank shells. During and right after WWII, many new plastic explosives were made including Compositions C, C2, and eventually C3. The chemical called RDX (Research Department Explosive) was used with many plasticizers to decrease sensitivity and make the composition plastic.

Today plastic explosives are used more and more by military and terrorists alike. One popular plastic explosive is C-4. Just like other explosives, some energy is needed to detonate it. That is where the blasting cap comes in. Shooting it will not work and it burns like wood (in Vietnam, soldiers actually burned C-4 as an improvised cooking fire). A blasting cap or detonator uses a smaller explosion to set off the bigger one. This is the exact science from HowStuffWorks.com; "An electrical detonator, for example, uses a brief charge to set off a small amount of explosive material. When somebody triggers the detonator (by transmitting the charge through detonator cord to a blasting cap, for example), the explosion applies a powerful shock that triggers the C-4 explosive material." That shock will, in turn, set off the rest of the explosive. But that is not all! What looks like demolition in a second is really a 2 part explosion.

A C-4 explosion has 2 parts. Part 1: The initial explosion happens and numerous gases decompose including nitrogen and carbon oxides. They expand at 26,400 feet per second, hitting objects with an immense amount of force. Part 2: All the gases are pushed outward because of the first explosion, but now they come rushing inward in a less destructive second explosion. So it is sort of like a paddle ball. You hit it out and then it comes back to hit you in the face.

So, the plastic explosive has come a long way from 808. But it still retains its basic properties: being moldable, being used over a wide range of temperatures, being applicable to any surface, and as safe to handle as one can get with a highly explosive device or material. It was very simple and weak but today it is very destructive. It is, has been, and will be very useful in military operations throughout history.

reflection page

how do you know your sources are credible: the pictures are easy. I just needed to find pictures, not the real thing. the websites, on the other hand, are not. One is .org a site, so that was credible. but the rest were not as easy. It is kind of hard to prove their credibility until you notice one thing. any other sites like them all have the same basic facts the others the others have. the sites i have chosen just have more of them in one place. that way i have all i need in one place.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">what tecnological problems did you run into: wiki spaces just messes up on me sometimes, as evidenced by the random indents (or lack of which, in this case). it will not let you tab, it has no spell check, and i think i messed up one of the citations. Also, the school computer i am using has powerpoint 2003. Because of that my file will not play (i made it at home on powerpoint 2007). i wanted to do a paragraph on semtex, but the information i had was not enough and i could not bring up the picture i found at school.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">how is teconology changeing life today: <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman','serif'; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%; margin: 0in 0in 10pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">it may help,(see, random indent!) but it also causes alot of headaches because when somthing goes wrong with technology today, it takes a team of super nerds just to figure out what in the heack happend! And it usaly costs more to repair it then if you just got a new one.

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