ANFO stands for ammonium nitrate/fuel oil (most often diesel fuel, sometimes kerosene or even molasses). It is by far the most widely used explosive in coal mining, quarrying, metal mining, and civil construction: it accounts for an estimated 80% of the 6,000,000,000 pounds (2,700,000 metric tons) of explosive used annually in North America. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Fuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. ... This article is about the fuel. ... It has been suggested that RP-1 be merged into this article or section. ... Molasses or treacle is a thick syrup by-product from the processing of the sugarcane or sugar beet into sugar. ... This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A small cinder quarry A dimension stone quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. ... This article is about mineral extraction. ...

Chemistry

ANFO under most conditions is considered a high explosive: it decomposes through detonation rather than deflagration and with a high velocity of detonation. It is a secondary explosive consisting of distinct fuel and oxidizer phases and requiring confinement for efficient detonation. Its sensitivity is relatively low: it generally requires a booster to ensure reliable detonation. The explosive efficiency associated with ANFO is approximately 80% of TNT, also stated as (0.8) TNT equivalency. The most efficient mixed AN explosives using fuels other than fuel oil can exceed (1.6) TNT equivalency. This article is concerned solely with chemical explosives. ... A weapons cache is detonated at the East River Range on Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan Detonation is a process of supersonic combustion that involves a shock wave and a reaction zone behind it. ... A log in a fire place. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Explosive velocity. ... An oxidizing agent is a substance that oxidizes another substance in electrochemistry or redox chemical reactions in general. ... Confinement is the physics phenomenon that quarks cannot be isolated. ... An explosive booster acts as a bridge between a low energy explosive and a low sensitivity (but typically high energy) explosive. ... R-phrases S-phrases Related Compounds Related compounds picric acid hexanitrobenzene Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 Â°C, 100 kPa) Infobox disclaimer and references Trinitrotoluene (TNT) is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. ...

The basic chemistry of ANFO detonation is the reaction of ammonium nitrate (NH₄NO₃) with a long chain hydrocarbon (CNH_2n+2) to form nitrogen, carbon dioxide and water. In an ideal stoichiometrically balanced reaction, ANFO is composed of approximately 94.3% AN and 5.7% FO by weight. In practice, a slight excess of fuel oil is added, as underdosing results in reduced performance while overdosing merely results in more post-blast fumes. When detonation conditions are optimal, the aforementioned gases are the only products. In practical use, such conditions are impossible to attain, and blasts produce moderate amounts of toxic gases such as carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, and oxides of nitrogen (NO_x). General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Atomic mass 14. ... Carbon dioxide is a chemical compound composed of one carbon and two oxygen atoms. ... Impact of a drop of water. ... In chemistry, stoichiometry is the study of the combination of elements in chemical reactions. ... Carbon monoxide, with the chemical formula CO, is a colourless, odourless, and tasteless gas. ... Hydrogen sulfide (hydrogen sulphide in British English), H2S, is a colorless, toxic, flammable gas that is responsible for the foul odor of rotten eggs and flatulence. ... The term nitrogen oxide is a general term and can be used to refer to any of these oxides (oxygen compounds) of nitrogen, or to a mixture of them: Nitric oxide (NO), nitrogen(II) oxide Nitrogen dioxide (NO2) Dinitrogen monoxide (N2O) (Nitrous oxide) Dinitrogen trioxide (N2O3) Dinitrogen tetroxide (N2O4) Dinitrogen... The 3 letter word/formula nox can mean: Nyx, a goddess of Night (nox is Latin for night). ...

Discovery

Unmixed ammonium nitrate can decompose explosively and has been responsible for industrial disasters such as the Texas City disaster in Texas City, Texas in 1947 and the Ryongchon disaster of Ryongchon, North Korea in 2004. However, it is considered an inefficient explosive as it exhibits only approximately (0.2) TNT equivalency. The Texas City Disaster of April 16, 1947, started with the mid-morning fire and detonation of approximately 17,000,000 pounds (7,700 tonnes) of ammonium nitrate on board the French-registered vessel SS Grandcamp in the port at Texas City, Texas, killing 581 people. ... Texas City is a city located in Galveston County in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown metropolitan area. ... The Ryongchŏn disaster was a train disaster that occurred in the town of Ryongchŏn, North Korea near the border with China on April 22, 2004. ... Ryongchŏn is a city in North Korea. ...

Industrial use

Ammonium nitrate is widely used as a fertilizer in the agricultural industry. Spreading manure, an organic fertilizer Fertilizers (British English fertilisers) are compounds given to plants to promote growth; they are usually applied either via the soil, for uptake by plant roots, or by foliar feeding, for uptake through leaves. ... Agriculture (a term which encompasses farming) is the art, science or practice of producing food, feed, fiber and many other desired goods by the systematic raising of plants and animals. ...

In the mining industry, the term ANFO specifically describes a mixture of solid ammonium nitrate prills and fuel oil. In this form, it has a bulk density of approximately 840 kg/m³. The density of individual prills is about 1300 kg/m³, while the density of pure crystalline ammonium nitrate is 1700 kg/m³. It is notable that AN prills used for explosive applications are physically different from fertilizer prills; the former contain approximately 20% air. These voids are necessary to sensitize ANFO: they create so-called "hot spots" in which the interaction of the detonation front with a spherical void concentrates energy. Blasting-grade AN prills are typically between 0.9 and 3.0 mm in diameter. Prill is a dry pellet form of the explosive ANFO. Categories: Stub ... Bulk density a property of particulate materials. ...

AN is highly hygroscopic; that is, it readily absorbs water from air. Care must be taken with its storage in humid environments, as any absorbed water interferes with its explosive function. AN is also water soluble. If ANFO is to be used in wet mining conditions, considerable effort must be taken to dewater boreholes. A hygroscopic substance is a substance that absorbs water readily from its surroundings. ... Water borehole in northern Uganda A borehole is a deep and narrow shaft in the ground used for abstraction of fluid or gas reserves below the earths surface. ...

Other explosives based on the AN/FO chemistry exist; the most commonly used are emulsions. They differ from ANFO in the physical form the reactants take. The most notable properties of emulsions are water resistance and higher bulk density. A. Two immisicible liquids, not emulsified; B. An emulsion of Phase B dispersed in Phase A; C. The unstable emulsion progressively separates; D. The surfactant (purple outline) positions itself on the interfaces between Phase A and Phase B, stabilizing the emulsion An emulsion is a mixture of two immiscible (unblendable...

The popularity of ANFO is largely attributable to its low cost and high stability. In most jurisdictions, ammonium nitrate need not be classified as an explosive for transport purposes; it is merely an oxidizer. Most mines prepare ANFO on-site using the same No. 2 diesel fuel that powers their vehicles. Many fuels can theoretically be used; however, the low volatility and cost of No. 2 diesel makes it ideal. An oxidizing agent is a substance that oxidizes another substance in electrochemistry or redox chemical reactions in general. ... This article is about the fuel. ...

Terrorist use

AN/FO has occasionally been used in terrorist bombings. First improvised in 1970 by student protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the ANFO car bomb was soon adopted by the Provisional IRA. It has also seen use by groups such as the FARC, ETA, and various Palestinian extremists. A more sophisticated variant of ANFO (with nitromethane as the fuel called ANNM) was used in the Oklahoma City bombing. It is noteworthy that improvised bombs made with agricultural-grade AN are less sensitive and less efficient than the explosive-grade variety. The University of Wisconsin–Madison (also known as UW–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, University of Wisconsin, or UW) is a selective public research university located in Madison, Wisconsin. ... The Provisional Irish Republican Army (PIRA) is a paramilitary group which aimed, through the use of violence, to achieve three goals: (i) British withdrawal from Ireland, (ii) the political unification of Ireland through the merger of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland , and (iii) the creation of an all... The Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia–Ejército del Pueblo or FARC-EP (Spanish for Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia–Peoples Army) is Colombias oldest and largest guerrilla group, established in 1964-1966 as the military wing of the Colombian Communist Party. ... ETA symbol or ETA (Basque for Basque Homeland and Freedom; IPA pronunciation: [) is a paramilitary Basque nationalist organization. ... The term Palestinian has other usages, for which see definitions of Palestinian. ... Flash point 35 °C R/S statement R: S: RTECS number PA9800000 Related compounds Related nitro compounds nitroethane Related compounds methyl nitrite methyl nitrate Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa) Infobox disclaimer and references Nitromethane is an organic... The Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist attack on April 19, 1995 aimed at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building, a U.S. government office complex in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. ...

See also

• AnWax
• Prill
• Sprengel explosive