Difference between smokeless and black powder

Modern firearms are significant evolution in terms of weapons. It is not just the technology of the weapons. The technology used in creating propellants has changed.

Where once we used sinew, wood and strength to send arrows, spears and similar far away. From this we took a fast burning fire to send arrows even further. We then took that same idea and channelled it into a tube. This focused the power of fire.

Eventually arrows, rocks and more were replaced by solid metal pellets. The propellants used for these solid metal balls gradually became standardised. This was known as black powder.

Black powder was widely used as it was both simple and effective.

By contrast to modern propellants black powder is a low pressure propellant. This means lower quality metals could be used to produce barrels, breaches and other parts of the weapon. This is because the probability of a catastrophic failure from black powder is much lower.

While black powder was useful and powerful there were some very obvious demerits. The most obvious can be seen in re-enactments. More accurately it is what you can not see.

Black powder is well known for generate smoke. A lot of smoke. This obscured the field and made it hard to use weapons effectively.

Despite this black powder was used for more than 500 years.

The change in propellant was not made lightly.

Going from black powder to smokeless powder had a very obvious advantage given the name. Less obvious is that smokeless powder is much more powerful. It is a high pressure propellant.

The high pressure nature of smokeless powder is a problem. If the weapon using it is of inferior quality the high pressure combustion can lead to the weapon experiencing a critical failure.

When the barrel, breach and so on can contain the reaction projectiles can travel further, faster and results in greater impact. There is also less smoke and in the case of small arms practically none.

Unlike black powder smokeless powder is more reliant on the size and shape it has. Black powder is generally available as granules or grains. These are like charcoal clumps just on a much smaller scale.

Smokeless powder by contrast comes in sticks, moulded shapes, granules and more. The range of shapes directly relates to the combustion rate. The more surface area the faster the burn.



Relevant links:

"Civil War Firearms: The Guns of North & South" Full Documentary
   • "Civil War Firearms: The Guns of Nort...  

Civil War Musket & Cannon Firing Demos - Gettysburg NMP - Re-enacting Retro
   • Civil War Musket & Cannon Firing Demo...  

Wiki: smokeless powder
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smokele...

Wiki: Cordite
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cordite...