Cordite
Cordite is kind of like a very special type of magic powder that makes things go boom. In order to make it, you need to mix a few different ingredients together: nitrocellulose, nitroglycerin, and sometimes some other special things.
Nitrocellulose is a fancy word for a kind of chemical that comes from wood pulp. It's like when you make paper and sometimes you might see little tiny pieces of fluff that come off. That stuff is called cellulose. Nitrocellulose is kind of like that, but it's been changed in a special way so that it can burn really easily.
Nitroglycerin is another special chemical that's made out of a few other chemicals mixed together. It's actually kind of dangerous by itself because it's very explosive, but if you mix it with the nitrocellulose and some other things in the right way, it becomes much safer.
Once all of those things are mixed together, you end up with a special type of powder that looks a little bit like tiny, brown pieces of spaghetti. You can use this powder to make all sorts of things go boom, like fireworks, guns, and even some types of engines.
But it's important to remember that cordite is a very powerful thing and you should never, ever try to make it at home or play with it by yourself. It's a job for very special and careful people with lots of experience, just like how your mom or dad might use a very sharp knife in the kitchen but you should never touch it.
Nitrocellulose is a fancy word for a kind of chemical that comes from wood pulp. It's like when you make paper and sometimes you might see little tiny pieces of fluff that come off. That stuff is called cellulose. Nitrocellulose is kind of like that, but it's been changed in a special way so that it can burn really easily.
Nitroglycerin is another special chemical that's made out of a few other chemicals mixed together. It's actually kind of dangerous by itself because it's very explosive, but if you mix it with the nitrocellulose and some other things in the right way, it becomes much safer.
Once all of those things are mixed together, you end up with a special type of powder that looks a little bit like tiny, brown pieces of spaghetti. You can use this powder to make all sorts of things go boom, like fireworks, guns, and even some types of engines.
But it's important to remember that cordite is a very powerful thing and you should never, ever try to make it at home or play with it by yourself. It's a job for very special and careful people with lots of experience, just like how your mom or dad might use a very sharp knife in the kitchen but you should never touch it.