Contact explosive

A contact explosive is a chemical substance that explodes violently when it is exposed to a relatively small amount of energy (e.g. friction, pressure, sound, light).

The extreme sensitivity of contact explosives is due to either chemical composition, bond type, or structure.

[6] Chemicals like gasoline, a fuel, burn instead of explode because they must come into contact with oxygen in the combustion reaction.

Covalent compounds that have a large unequal sharing of electrons have the capability to fall apart very easily and explosively.

Dry picric acid, which is more powerful than TNT, was used in blasting charges and artillery shells.

Compounds like lead azide are used to manufacture bullets that explode into shrapnel on impact.Flash powders are used in a variety of military and police tactical pyrotechnics.

Evidence for the instability of these IEDs lies in the multiple reports of premature or wrongful IED explosions.

Though some flash powders are too volatile and dangerous to be safely used, there are milder compounds that are still incorporated into performances today.

In these small explosives, a minuscule amount of silver fulminate is encased in gravel and cigarette paper.