On Wednesday, August 5, 2020, 05:53:51 p.m. EDT, Frederick Noronha <fredericknoro...@gmail.com> wrote: A detailed article in The Conversation on the Beirut tragedy, by Gabriel da Silva:
What is ammonium nitrate, the chemical that exploded in Beirut? <https://theconversation.cmail20.com/t/r-l-jkhtuhul-uidlgxn-m/> ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Folks, One of the operations we had when I worked for a construction firm in Tanzania - was a stone quarry. We would blast a cliff face everyday at 4.00 pm. In the 1980s, Tanzania imposed heavy taxes on imported explosives.It also subsidized fertilizers, including ammonia nitrate. All the stone quarry owners would pack the blasting hole with the cheap fertilizer and use a minimum amount of explosive to detonate it. Ammonia nitrate is sold in plastic bags to peasants and farmers. There are no restrictions regarding the storage of the fertilizer as their is little chance of it exploding on its own. Mervyn
