INITIATION – Hard to initiate explosion, will not propagate a detonation wave
SENSITIVITY – Very insensitive, needs to be mixed with another nitrating compound to make a useful explosive
STABILITY – Very stable when free from acidity
DETONATION VELOCITY – 6,610 m/s (21,686 fps)
RE FACTOR (BRISANCE) [TNT=1.0] – 1.17
TOXICITY – Like nitroglycerine, rapid vasodilation if ingested
MELTING POINT – 2o C.(356o F.)
IGNITION POINT – 197o C.(387o F.) Decomposes and spontaneously ignites
BOILING POINT – 160o C.(320o F.)
FREEZING POINT – -11.2o C
SOLUBILITY – Low solubility in water, soluble in ether, acetone, chloroform, benzene
APPLICATIONS – PRINCIPLE USES – Replacement for Nitroglycerine in propellant mixtures during WWII shortages
DEGN was used extensively by Germany and Italy during World War II as a replacement for the Nitroglycerine normally used in the production of smokeless powder. The liquid explosive DEGN is more powerful than TNT but less so that Nitroglycerine. It is also much more stable and less sensitive to initiation from shock than Nitroglycerine and has been used in a number of dynamite formulations. The volatility of DEGN, giving it a tendency to evaporate into the air, has prevented the material from being widely used except due to the demands of wartime production. Until 1995, it was used as a taggant in Semtex formulations in order to give the material a very detectable odor without affecting its explosive characteristics. That use in Semtex has since been replaced by Dimethyldinitrobutane.
