A comparison of smokeless powders and mixtures by capillary zone electrophoresis

The analysis of inorganic ions present in smokeless and muzzleloading powders has been performed using capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE). Previous publications have examined inorganic low explosives using CZE, but have not looked at the ion profiles from smokeless powders. In this report, seven commercially available smokeless powders were analyzed as unburned powder and burned residue. The results demonstrate that ionic profiles can be used to characterize smokeless powders. Our analysis also included a smokeless powder/Pyrodex(R) combination to determine if smokeless powder ions are distinguishable in a mixture; however, the high concentration of ions present in Pyrodex(R) RS prevented its detection. In addition, five different smokeless powder samples as well as Pyrodex(R)RS were collected for analysis subsequent to deflagration in fifteen plastic pipe bombs. The relative ion concentrations between these powders can be used to illustrate the differences between open burning and pipe bomb deflagration.