ABSTRACT
This chapter outlines some of the tests used to avoid accidents. It discusses and describes in some considerable detail the safety philosophy and safety tests and criteria used in one commercial explosives company. Tests must be carried out by the manufacturer of explosives and accessories to assess the sensitivity of new explosives products to impact, friction, shock, and thermal stimuli in order to safeguard against inadvertent explosions. Large-scale manufacture of waterbased explosives developed during the 1960s. The concept at that time was to use high strength; high density aluminized trinitrotoluene-sensitized watergels. The chapter describes the tests presently used within Nitro Nobel AB for determining the sensitivity of the emulsion matrices and final emulsion explosives products. It outlines some of the hazard tests carried out in order to get approval from authorities for the manufacturing, transportation, and handling of explosives.
