Cordite is a family of smokeless propellants developed and produced in the United Kingdom from the late 19th Century to replace gunpowder as a military propellant for large weapons, such as tank guns, artillery and naval guns. Mark I Cordite was also used in the .303 British standard rifle cartridge between 1891 and 1915. Smokeless powder Smokeless powder is the name given to a number of gunpowder-like propellants used in firearms which produce negligible smoke when fired, unlike the older black powder which it replaced. ... Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ... Smokeless powder Gunpowder is a pyrotechnic composition, an explosive mixture that burns rapidly, producing volumes of hot gas which can be used as a propellant in firearms and fireworks. ... A M1 Abrams firing. ... Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ...

Cordite has been used since World War I by the UK and British Commonwealth countries. Its use was further developed in the early years of World War II, as 2 inch and 3-inch diameter solid-fuel rockets for launching anti-aircraft weapons.^[1] Small Cordite rocket charges were also developed for ejector seats made by the Martin-Baker Company. “The Great War ” redirects here. ... This article needs additional references or sources for verification. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... An inch (plural: inches; symbol or abbreviation: in or, sometimes, ″ - a double prime) is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... The Space Shuttle Columbia is initially launched with the help of solid-fuel boosters A solid rocket or a solid fuel rocket is a rocket with a motor that uses solid propellants (fuel/oxidizer). ... American troops mount an anti-aircraft gun near the Algerian coastline in 1943 Anti-aircraft warfare, or air defence, is any method of engaging military aircraft in combat from the ground. ... US Air Force F-15 Eagle ejection seat test using a mannequin. ... Martin-Baker Aircraft is a manufacturer of aircraft seats and is the oldest existing maker of ejector seats. ...

Cordite is now obsolete and it is no longer produced. Production ceased in the United Kingdom, around the end of the 20th century, with the closure of the last World War II Cordite factory, ROF Bishopton. However, Cordite propellant may still be encountered in the form of legacy ammunition dating from World War II onwards. (19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries) Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th century was that century which lasted from 1901–2000 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar (1900–1999... The Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Bishopton was a UK Ministry of Supply, World War II, Explosive ROF. It is sited adjacent to the town of Bishopton, Renfrewshire, in Scotland. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000...

Adoption of smokeless powder by the British government

Cordite started off as a double-base propellant. It was made by combining two high explosives: nitrocellulose and nitroglycerin. Skeletal formula of nitrocellulose Ball-and-stick model of a section of nitrocellulose Nitrocellulose (also: cellulose nitrate, flash paper) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through, for example, exposure to nitric acid or another powerful nitrating agent. ... Nitroglycerin (NG), also known as nitroglycerine, trinitroglycerin, and glyceryl trinitrate, is a chemical compound. ...

Early smokeless powders

The first smokeless powder, Poudre B, had been developed in 1886 by the French chemist Paul Vieille. It was made out of two forms of nitrocellulose (collodion and guncotton) softened with ethanol and ether and kneaded together. It was immediately adopted by the French military but it tended to become unstable over time. Smokeless powder Smokeless powder is the name given to a number of gunpowder-like propellants used in firearms which produce negligible smoke when fired, unlike the older black powder which it replaced. ... Poudre B (Poudre Blanche in French = white powder) or Vieille powder, was the first smokeless gunpowder. ... // Collodion is a solution of nitrocellulose in ether or acetone, sometimes with the addition of alcohols. ... Nitrocellulose (Cellulose nitrate, guncotton) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose (e. ... Grain alcohol redirects here. ... This article is about the chemical compound. ...

The following year, 1887, Alfred Nobel invented and patented a smokeless propellant he called Ballistite. It was composed of 10% camphor, 45% nitroglycerin and 45% collodion (nitrocellulose). Over time the camphor tended to evaporate leaving an unstable explosive.   (October 21, 1833, Stockholm, Sweden—December 10, 1896, Sanremo, Italy) was a Swedish chemist, engineer, innovator, armaments manufacturer and the inventor of dynamite. ... For other uses, see Patent (disambiguation). ... Ballistite is a smokeless propellant explosive made from two high explosives nitrocellulose mixed with nitroglycerin. ... R-phrases 11-20/21/22-36/37/38 S-phrases 16-26-36 RTECS number EX1260000 (R) EX1250000 (S) Supplementary data page Structure and properties n, εr, etc. ...

Development of Cordite

A United Kingdom government committee, known as the "Explosives Committee", chaired by Sir Frederick Abel, monitored foreign developments in explosives and obtained samples of Poudre B and Ballistite. However, neither of these smokeless powders were recommended for adoption by the Explosives Committee. Sir Frederick Augustus Abel, Bart. ...

Abel and Sir James Dewar, who was also on the committee, developed and jointly patented in 1889 a new propellant consisting of 58% nitroglycerin, by weight, 37% guncotton and 5% vaseline. For other persons named James Dewar, see James Dewar (disambiguation). ... Nitroglycerin (NG), also known as nitroglycerine, trinitroglycerin, and glyceryl trinitrate, is a chemical compound. ... Nitrocellulose (Cellulose nitrate, guncotton) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose (e. ... Petroleum jelly, vaseline, petrolatum or soft paraffin [3] is a semi-solid mixture of hydrocarbons, originally promoted as a topical ointment for its healing properties. ...

Using acetone as a solvent, it was extruded as spaghetti-like rods initially called "cord powder" or "the Committee's modification of Ballistite" but this was swiftly abbreviated to "Cordite". The chemical compound acetone (also known as propanone, dimethyl ketone, 2-propanone, propan-2-one and β-ketopropane) is the simplest representative of the ketones. ... A solvent is a liquid that dissolves a solid, liquid, or gaseous solute, resulting in a solution. ... Cooked spaghetti in a bowl. ...

Nobel and Abel Patent dispute

Nobel sued Abel and Dewar over an alleged patent infringement. His patent specified that the nitrocellulose should be "of the well-known soluble kind". This dispute eventually reached the House of Lords, in 1895, but lost because the words "of the well-known soluble kind" in his patent were taken to mean the soluble collodion and hence specifically excluded the insoluble guncotton. The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as the Lords. The Sovereign, the House of Commons (which is the lower house of Parliament and referred to as the Commons), and the Lords together comprise the Parliament. ... Year 1895 (MDCCCXCV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Sunday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ...

Cordite formulations

An 80 year old 4" round brass cartridge case filled with cordite as found on sea bed.

It was quickly discovered that the rate of burning could be varied by altering the surface area of the cordite. Narrow rods were used in small-arms and gave relatively fast burning, while thicker rods would burn more slowly and were used for longer barrels such as those used in artillery and naval guns. Image File history File links Cordite. ... Image File history File links Cordite. ... A M4 Carbine just after firing, with an ejected case in mid-air The article titled casing is a disambiguation page. ... Artillery with Gabion fortification Cannons on display at Fort Point Continental Artillery crew from the American Revolution Firing of an 18-pound gun, Louis-Philippe Crepin, (1772 – 1851) A forge-welded Iron Cannon in Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu. ...

Cordite (Mk I) and Cordite MD

The original Abel-Dewar formulation was soon superseded as it caused excessive gun barrel erosion. It has since become known as Cordite Mk I.

The composition of Cordite was changed to 65% guncotton and 30% nitroglycerine (keeping 5% vaseline) shortly after the end of the Second Boer War. This was known as Cordite MD (= MoDified). Cordite MD is also obsolete. Combatants British Empire Orange Free State South African Republic Commanders Sir Redvers Buller Lord Kitchener Lord Roberts Paul Kruger Louis Botha Koos de la Rey Martinus Steyn Christiaan de Wet Casualties 6,000 - 7,000 (A further ~14,000 from disease) 6,000 - 8,000 (Unknown number from disease) Civilians...

Cordite RDB

During the World War I acetone was in short supply in Great Britain and a new experimental form was developed.^[2] This was Cordite RDB (= Research Department formula B); which was 52% collodion, 42% nitroglycerin and 6% vaseline (Petroleum jelly). It was produced at HM Factory, Gretna;^[2] and the Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath. “The Great War ” redirects here. ... // Collodion is a solution of nitrocellulose in ether or acetone, sometimes with the addition of alcohols. ... Nitroglycerin (NG), also known as nitroglycerine, trinitroglycerin, and glyceryl trinitrate, is a chemical compound. ... Petroleum jelly, vaseline, petrolatum or soft paraffin [3] is a semi-solid mixture of hydrocarbons, originally promoted as a topical ointment for its healing properties. ... H.M. Factory, Gretna was a UK government World War I Cordite factory, adjacent to the Solway Firth, near Gretna, Dumfries and Galloway. ... The Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath, (RNCF), was set up at Holton Heath, Dorset in World War I to manufacture Cordite for the Royal Navy. ...

Cordite RDB, unfortunately, tended to become unstable if stored too long. Once acetone production increased, by the use of fermentation (see Chaim Weizmann), the older form of Cordite, Cordite MD, was brought back for Royal Navy use. This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Chaim Azriel Weizmann (Hebrew: חיים עזריאל ויצמן) November 27, 1874 – November 9, 1952) was a chemist, statesman, President of the World Zionist Organization, first President of Israel (elected February 1, 1949, served 1949 - 1952) and founder of a research institute in Israel that eventually became the Weizmann Institute of Science. ...

Cordite SC

Research on solvent-free Cordite RDB continued primarily on the addition of stabilizers, which led to the type commonly used in World War II onwards. In Great Britain this was known as Cordite SC (= Solventless Cordite). Cordite SC was produced in different shapes and sizes so the particular geometry of Cordite SC was indicated by the use of letters or numbers, or both, after the SC. For example SC followed by a number was rod-shaped cord, with the number representing the diameter in Thou. SC T followed by two sets of numbers was tubular propellant with the numbers representing the two diameters in Thou. Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Calabi-Yau manifold Geometry (Greek γεωμετρία; geo = earth, metria = measure) is a part of mathematics concerned with questions of size, shape, and relative position of figures and with properties of space. ... A thou, also known as a mil, is a unit of length equal to one thousandth of an international inch. ... Look up Tube in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A thou, also known as a mil, is a unit of length equal to one thousandth of an international inch. ...

Two-inch (approximately 50 mm) and three-inch (approximately 75 mm) diameter rocket Cordite SC charges were developed in great secrecy in the later stages of WW II for anti-aircraft purposes—the so-called Z-gun batteries.^[1] An inch (plural: inches; symbol or abbreviation: in or, sometimes, ″ - a double prime) is the name of a unit of length in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ...

Great Britain changed to metric units in the 1960s so there was a discontinuity in the propellant geometry numbering system. The International System of Units (symbol: SI) (for the French phrase Syst me International dUnit s) is the most widely used system of units. ... The 1960s decade refers to the years from January 1, 1960 to December 31, 1969, inclusive. ...

Cordite N

An important development during World War II was the addition of another explosive, nitroguanidine, to the mixture to form triple-base propellant or Cordite N. This solved two problems with the large naval guns of the day as fitted to capital ships. Nitroguanidine produces large amounts of nitrogen when heated, which had the benefit of reducing the muzzle flash and its lower burning temperature greatly reduced the erosion of the gun barrel. Nitroguanidine (2-Nitroguanidine, picrite, CH4N4O2, H2NC(NH)NHNO2) is a chemical compound. ... The capital ships of a navy are its important warships; the ones with the heaviest firepower and armor. ... General Name, Symbol, Number nitrogen, N, 7 Chemical series nonmetals Group, Period, Block 15, 2, p Appearance colorless gas Standard atomic weight 14. ...

Cordite charge design

Main article: Internal ballistics

Internal ballistics, a subfield of ballistics, is the study of a projectiles behavior from the time its propellants igniter is initiated until it exits the gun barrel. ...

Cordite manufacture

UK Government factories

In Great Britain Cordite was developed for military use at the Royal Arsenal Woolwich and at the Waltham Abbey Royal Gunpowder Mills from 1889 onwards. The Royal Arsenal, originally known as the Woolwich Arsenal, carried out armaments manufacture, ammunition proofing and explosives research. ... , Woolwich town hall dates from when this was a borough in its own right. ... Image:NapoleonicBattle. ...

In World War I a great Cordite factory, HM Factory, Gretna, which straddled the Scotland-England border at Gretna to manufacture Cordite for the British Army and for British Commonwealth forces. A separate factory, The Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath, was opened to manufacture Cordite for the Royal Navy. Both the Gretna and the Holton Heath Cordite factories closed at the end of World War I. H.M. Factory, Gretna was a UK government World War I Cordite factory, adjacent to the Solway Firth, near Gretna, Dumfries and Galloway. ... This article is about the country. ... Gretna Green is a small town in the south of Scotland, on the border with England. ... The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. ... The Royal Navy Cordite Factory, Holton Heath, (RNCF), was set up at Holton Heath, Dorset in World War I to manufacture Cordite for the Royal Navy. ... The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore the Senior Service). ...

By the start of World War II Holton Heath had reopened and an additional factory for the Royal Navy, The Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent, opened at Caerwent in Wales. A very large Royal Ordnance Factory, ROF Bishopton, was opened in Scotland to manufacture Cordite for the British Army and the Royal Air Force. A new Cordite factory at Waltham Abbey and two additional ROF's—ROF Ranskill and ROF Wexham—were also opened. Cordite produced in these factories was sent to Filling Factories for filling into ammunition. The Royal Navy Propellant Factory, Caerwent, Monmouthshire, (later RAF Caerwent) UK was associated with the manufacture or storage of ammunition components from 1939 to 1993. ... Caerwent is a village in Monmouthshire, Wales. ... This article is about the country. ... Royal Ordnance Factories (ROFs) was the collective name of the UK governments munitions factories in and after World War II. Until privatisation in 1987 they were the responsibility of the Ministry of Supply and later the Ministry of Defence. ... The Royal Ordnance Factory (ROF) Bishopton was a UK Ministry of Supply, World War II, Explosive ROF. It is sited adjacent to the town of Bishopton, Renfrewshire, in Scotland. ... ROF Ranskill ceased production in 1945 but was retained by the ROF organisation until 1975 on a care and maintenance basis, firstly under the administration of ROF Bishopton and in the latter years by ROF Bridgwater. ... A Filling Factory was a munitions factory which specialised in filling various munitions, such as bombs, shells, cartridges, screening smokes, etc. ...

Other British cordite factories in World War II

The British Government set up additional Cordite factories, not under Royal Ordnance Factory control but as Agency Factories run on behalf of the Ministry of Supply (MS). The company of ICI Nobel at Ardeer was asked in 1939 to construct and operate six factories in southern Scotland. Four of these six were involved in Cordite or firearm-propellant manufacture. The works at MS Drungans (Dumfries) produced guncotton that was converted to Cordite at MS Dalbeattie (triple-base cordite) and at MS Powfoot (monobase granulated guncotton for small-arms). A smaller site at Girvan, now occupied by Grant's distillery, produced cordite and TNT.^[3] The ICI Ardeer site also had a mothballed World War I Government-owned Cordite factory.^[4] The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK Government formed in 1939 to co-ordinate the supplying of equipment to the British armed forces, headed by the Minister of Supply. ... Nobel Enterprises is a chemicals business based at Ardeer, near to near Stevenston in Scotland. ... The Buccleuch St Bridge Devorgilla Bridge Overlooking Dumfries The Old Bridge House Dumfries ((IPA: ) pronounced dum-freece, not dum-fries) (Dùn Phris in Scottish Gaelic) is a former royal burgh and town with a population of around 31,146 (37,846 including the Locharbriggs and Cargenbridge areas). ... 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 Great War ” redirects here. ...

35% of British Cordite produced between 1942 and 1945 came from Ardeer and these agency factories.^[5] ICI ran a similar works at Deer Park near Melbourne in Australia and in South Africa.^[5]

Overseas supplies

Additional sources of propellant were also sought from the British Commonwealth in both World War I and World War II. Flag of the Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations is a voluntary association of independent sovereign states, most of which were once governed by the United Kingdom and are its former colonies. ...

World War I

Before the war the Canadian Explosives Limited produced 3,000 lb (1362 kg) of rifle Cordite per month at its Beloeil factory, for the Quebec Arsenal. By November 1915 production had been expanded to 350,000 lb (159,000 kg) of cordite per month.^[6] Canadian Industries Limited, also known as C-I-L is a Canadian chemicals manufacturer. ... The pound (abbreviations: lb or, sometimes in the United States, #) is a unit of mass (called weight in everyday parlance) in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... KG, kg or Kg can refer to several things: Kilogram, the SI base unit of mass. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Belœil is a town in southwestern Quebec, Canada on the Richelieu River in the Regional County Municipality of La Vallée-du-Richelieu. ... Motto: Je me souviens (French: I remember) Capital Quebec City Largest city Montreal Official languages French Government - Lieutenant-Governor Pierre Duchesne - Premier Jean Charest (PLQ) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 75 - Senate seats 24 Confederation July 1, 1867 (1st) Area  Ranked 2nd - Total 1,542,056 km² (595... View of the Entrance to the Arsenal, by Canaletto, 1732. ... The pound (abbreviations: lb or, sometimes in the United States, #) is a unit of mass (called weight in everyday parlance) in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... KG, kg or Kg can refer to several things: Kilogram, the SI base unit of mass. ...

The Imperial Munitions Board set up a number of explosives factories in Canada. It built The British Cordite Ltd factory at Nobel, Ontario, in 1916/1917, to produce Cordite. Production started in mid 1917.^[6] The Imperial Munitions Board was a national agency, set up in Canada under the chairmanship of Joseph Wesley Flavelle by the British War Cabinet to alleviate the Shell Crisis of 1915 in the First World War. ... Nobel is a village located on the picturesque shores of Parry Sound. ...

Canadian Explosives Limited built an additional Cordite factory at Nobel, Ontario. Work stated in February 1918 and was finished on 24 August 1918. It was designed to produce 1,500,000 lb (681,000 kg) of Cordite per month.^[6] is the 236th day of the year (237th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1918 (MCMXVIII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... The pound (abbreviations: lb or, sometimes in the United States, #) is a unit of mass (called weight in everyday parlance) in a number of different systems, including English units, Imperial units, and United States customary units. ... KG, kg or Kg can refer to several things: Kilogram, the SI base unit of mass. ...

World War II

The United States did not use Cordite, however, several ammunition filling factories were set up in Canada in World War II to fill American propellant supplied by the USA under Lend-Lease. India, Pakistan and Australia were also approached. The Lend-Lease program was a program of the United States during World War II that allowed the United States to provide the Allied Powers with war material without becoming directly involved in the war. ...

In fiction

In Frederick Forsyth's thriller The Day of the Jackal, the disguised assassin ingests cordite to look ill and vulnerable. Frederick Forsyth. ... The Day of the Jackal is a thriller novel by Frederick Forsyth, first published in 1971, about a professional assassin who is contracted by the OAS, a French terrorist group of the early 1960s, to kill Charles de Gaulle. ...

Cordite is often incorrectly used as a synonym for gunpowder. Synonyms (in ancient Greek, συν (syn) = plus and όνομα (onoma) = name) are different words with similar or identical meanings. ... Smokeless powder Gunpowder is a pyrotechnic composition, an explosive mixture that burns rapidly, producing volumes of hot gas which can be used as a propellant in firearms and fireworks. ...

In Tom McCarthy's novel, Remainder, the narrator frequently notes an odor of cordite, which other characters cannot detect. Tom McCarthy can refer to any of the following people Tom McCarthy (ice hockey) was an ice hockey player for the Quebec Bulldogs and Hamilton Tigers in the National Hockey League Tom McCarthy (b. ...

In Preacher, the Comic Book by Garth Ennis, the Character Frankie uses Cordite-filled rounds, whilst firing upon the Character Proinsias Cassidy. During which time, he remarks "Oh man, smell that fuckin' Cordite. Nothin' else in the world smells like that." Preacher is a term the for someone who preaches sermons or gives homilies. ... A comic book is a magazine or book containing the art form of comics. ... Garth Ennis (born January 16, 1970 in Holywood, Northern Ireland) is a Northern Irish comics writer, best known for the DC/Vertigo series Preacher, co-created with artist Steve Dillon. ... Proinsias Cassidy (more commonly referred to as simply Cassidy) is a character, an Irish vampire from the comic book Preacher. ...

Notes

References

• Bowditch, M.R. and Hayward, L. (1996). A Pictorial record of the Royal Naval Cordite Factory: Holton Heath. Wareham: Finial Publishing. ISBN 1-900467-01-1.
• Brown, Donald, (1999), Somerset v Hitler: Secret Operations in the Mendips 1939 - 1945, Newbury: Countryside Books. ISBN 1-85306-590-0.
• Carnegie, David (1925). The History of Munitions Supply in Canada 1914-1918. London: Longmans, Green and Co.
• Cocroft, Wayne D., (2000), Dangerous Energy: The archaeology of gunpowder and military explosives manufacture. Swindon: English Heritage. ISBN 1-85074-718-0.
• Davis, Tenney L., (1943). The Chemistry of Powder and Explosives, Volume II, New York: John Wiley & Sons, and London: Chapman & Hall.
• Reader, W.J. (1975). Imperial Chemical Industries: A History. Volume II; The First Quarter-Century 1926-1952. London: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-215944-5.
• Ministry of Munitions of War, (1919). H.M. Factory, Gretna: Description of plant and process. Dumfries: J. Maxwell and Son, for His Majesty's Stationery Office.