Also known as: gunpowder.
| Composition | Saltpeter (potassium nitrate), charcoal, and sulfur |
|---|---|
| Typical proportion | About 75 parts saltpeter, 15 charcoal, 10 sulfur |
| Uses | Propelling charge and bursting charge |
| Grain | Coarser grains for larger guns |
The universal explosive
Black powder served as both the propelling charge that drove the projectile and the bursting charge that broke open shell and case. It was a mechanical mixture of saltpeter, charcoal, and sulfur, in proportions of roughly seventy-five, fifteen, and ten parts, milled and corned into grains.
Grain size was matched to the gun: coarse cannon powder for the largest pieces, finer grades for smaller ones, so the charge burned at a rate suited to the length of bore. Because surviving projectiles may still hold their black-powder bursting charge, recovered shells must be treated as hazardous.
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Sources & further reading
- United States Army, Ordnance Department. The Ordnance Manual for the Use of the Officers of the United States Army. 2nd ed. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott, 1862.
- Benton, James G. A Course of Instruction in Ordnance and Gunnery. 2nd ed. New York: D. Van Nostrand, 1862.