COMMON NAME – Composition C3
NAME – C-3
TYPE – High explosive mixture
DATE FIRST USED AS AN EXPLOSIVE – 1944
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN – USA
COMPOSITION – 77.1% RDX, 10.0% Dinitrotoluene, 5.0% Mononitrotoluene, 4.0% TNT, 3.0 % Tetryl, 0.9% Wet nitrocellulose
DENSITY – 1.60 g per ml
NORMAL STATE – Malleable solid
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE/COLOR – Yellow to cream
INITIATION – 0.08 g Tetryl
SENSITIVITY – Similar to TNT for impact, insensitive to friction
STABILITY – Stable in normal storage
DETONATION VELOCITY – 7,625 m/s (25,016 fps)
RE FACTOR (BRISANCE) [TNT=1.0] – 1.34
TOXICITY – Toxic if ingested, releases toxic gases when burned
MELTING POINT – 77o C. (170o F.) exudes plasticizer elements
IGNITION POINT – 280o C.(536o F.) Detonates
FREEZING POINT – -29o C (-20o F.) becomes hard and brittle
SOLUBILITY – Relatively insoluble in water, unaffected by 24 hours immersion
APPLICATIONS – PRINCIPLE USES – Flexible, malleable plastic explosive for demolition
Composition C3 was the final formulation for a plastic explosive used by the United States during World War II. The general mixture of C3 is very close to that of C2, but the ratio of base explosive to plasticizer was changed, along with an additional component added to the plasticizer. The new formulation was 77.1 % RDX to 22.9% plasticizer composition. This was very close to the original ratios used by the British for Composition C, but with a considerable difference in the plasticizing component. The main difference chemically between C2 and C3 was the substitution of Tetryl for 3 % of the RDX base explosive. The light yellow or cream-colored putty-like C3 remains flexible from -29o C (-20o F.), at which temperature it starts to become hard and brittle, to 51o C. (125o F.) when it starts to exude some oil without losing any of its explosive properties. Handling C3 with bare hands does tend to stain the skin yellow, a discoloration that is hard to remove.
