• General Safety

  Why fertilizer packs such a devastating power

  Posted by Nigel on 5 August 2020 at 10:26 am

  When an explosive compound detonates, it releases gas that rapidly expands. This “shock wave” is essentially a wall of dense air that can cause damage, and it dissipates as it spreads further out.

  A mass of exploding ammonium nitrate produces a blast that moves at many times the speed of sound, and this wave can reflect and bounce as it moves, especially in an urban area like the Beirut waterfront blast, destroying some buildings while leaving others relatively undamaged

  The explosive power of ammonium nitrate can be difficult to quantify in absolute terms, given its age and the conditions in which it has been stored. However, it could be as high as about 40 percent of the power of TNT.

  At 40 percent the power of TNT, the detonation of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored in Beirut could have produced 1 p.s.i. of overpressure, overpressure is defined as the pressure caused by a shock wave over and above normal atmospheric pressure, as far as 6,600 feet away.

  The same explosion would produce 27 p.s.i. at a range of 793 feet away, which would destroy most buildings, and kill people either through direct trauma or being struck by debris.

  Accidental detonation of ammonium nitrate has caused a number of deadly industrial accidents, including the worst in United States history: In 1947, a ship carrying an estimated 2,000 tons of ammonium nitrate caught fire and exploded in the harbor of Texas City, Texas, starting a chain reaction of blasts and blazes that killed 581 people.

  The chemical has also been the primary ingredient in bombs used in several terrorist attacks, including the destruction of the federal office building in Oklahoma City in 1995, which killed 168 people. That bomb contained about two tons of ammonium nitrate.

  

  Nigel replied 4 years, 4 months ago 1 Member · 0 Replies
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