Gunpowder comes from combining three different elements. Namely, potassium nitrate (saltpeter), charcoal (derived from willow tree), and sulfur. These ingredients were ground together carefully to create the serpentine powder.

The ingredients themselves required remixing before use, which made the process of creating gunpowder highly dangerous. But then wine, water, or any other liquid was also added to the mixture for minimizing the hazard of just one spark leading to a nasty, smoky fire.

And just when the liquid was mixed with the serpentine smokeless powder, pushing the concoction via a screen for making small pellets became possible.

So, in this article, the point of discussion is how does gunpowder work and how to choose the right gunpowder. Let’s find out all you might need to know!

The Invention of Gunpowder

Most historians have talked about gunpowder being originated in China (by Chinese alchemists). Back in the days, it was just an incendiary (designed to cause fires). It was only later on that gunpowder came to be used and known as a propellant. How this chemical explosive landed in Europe is still unknown to many.

In Europe, weapons that created smoke may or may not have employed gunpowder. But what remains for certain is that only after the technology developed in China did it make its way into Europe. Because the formula found in European territory had a lot in common with Chinese-originated gunpowder.

The Composition of Gunpowder

The ratio of the three ingredients involved in the process of making gunpowder is not always the same. That’s because the intended purpose of the propellant is different. So there isn’t any one correct recipe here.

Powders that fuel firearms are subjected to a fast burning rate in order to accelerate the projectile quickly. While rocket propellants are required to burn slower as they have to accelerate the body for a longer time. No wonder even cannons use powder that has a slower burning rate.

The French, back in 1879, created gunpowder using 12.5-percent charcoal, 12.5-percent sulfur, and 75-percent saltpeter (potassium nitrate). As for the English, they used 15-percent charcoal, 10-percent sulfur, and 75-percent saltpeter. What about rockets? The formula here consists of 23.2-percent charcoal, 14.4-percent sulfur, and 62.4-percent saltpeter.

How Does Gunpowder Work?

Gunpowder contains charcoal (which is the fuel), saltpeter or potassium nitrate (which is the oxidizer), and sulfur (which is the stabilizer). And all combine to give rise to a constant reaction, which, if not for potassium nitrate, would’ve been slow, as in the case of wood fire.

With wood fire, the carbon present in the fire draws oxygen from air. But with gunpowder, it’s saltpeter that provides the required oxygen.

Then comes the part where the sulfur burns first. And that, in turn, ignites the fuel i.e. charcoal. Therefore, the temperature increases to such an extent so as to tear through nitrate molecules to release the oxygen aiding the combustion.

Carbon, sulfur, and potassium nitrate, at this point, react together to create carbon dioxide and nitrogen gases, potassium sulfide, and heat energy. The heat leads to a rapid expansion of gases, which produces the propelling response with explosive force.

Difference Between Black Powder and Gunpowder

Traditional gunpowder and black powder are both used for firearms, right? But then the latter came about in America during the latter part of the nineteenth century. And it was introduced as a newer formulation, thus different from original gunpowder.

With black powder (which, just so you know, is not really black but rather tan or off-white in color), you get less smoke in comparison to traditional gunpowder.

Choosing the Right Gunpowder – What Matters the Most

When it comes to reloading applications, what type, quality, etc. of gunpowder you select can really make a huge difference. So let’s find out more about how it all matters…

1. Burn Rate

This has a direct, significant impact on the maximum pressure created by the gunpowder charge. The burn rate parameter also affects other equally important factors, like the type of load. With standard loads, a faster burn rate is utilized. Magnum loads, on the other hand, demand a slower burning rate.

2. Density

Gunpowder density is the bulk provided based on the charge weight. This means bulkier powder prevents a double charge. Now keep in mind that a single charge occupies the majority of gunpowder space. So the double charge either overflows or prevents the bullet from seating. Thus, stopping the ram prior to reaching the top.

3. Granule Shape

Every particle of gunpowder is known as a granule. And how the granules are shaped depends on the manufacturing of the powder. Also, different shapes produce different results in terms of metering and burning characteristics.

• Ball Powder

The granules, in this case, are spherical-shaped and small-sized. Ball gunpowder meters pretty well.

• Flattened Ball Powder

Much like ball powder, but slightly flattened. Both have plenty of similarities, no doubt. Such as improving low-temperature performance, which is great for shotgun hunting in the cold season.

• Flake Powder

The shape here is like that of tiny disks. Gunpowder like this is much more challenging to correctly meter because it tends to stack up. Also, when metering, flake powder’s inconsistent density is not the most ideal.

• Stick Powder

For rifle applications, nothing works better than stick powder, which has a small extruded cylindrical shape. It creates a decent temperature performance.

The only problem with stick powders is that, when reloading, they don’t uniformly meter out because of the powder measure. But then this can be avoided if the powder is grain-sized small.

There’s More to Gunpowder Than You Think!

So when it comes to reloading, what type of propellant should you choose? To be honest, let factors like the highest accuracy and velocity help you reach your decision. So what truly matters is how the propellant is made. This includes everything from the ratio of the three ingredients used, burn rate, type of powder, density, and some more.

In this post, even the origin and composition of gunpowder are discussed in an extensive yet brief manner.