Since the cone of impact is relatively small, no more than 10 to 15 times the diameter of the shell, true shrapnel shells needed to be carefully sighted and judiciously used in order to maximize their impact on the enemy. These balls continue onward to the target, spreading out in a cone-shaped pattern at ground level, with most of their energy coming from the original velocity of the shell itself rather than the lesser force of the secondary charge that freed them from the shell. This charge fractures the matrix holding the balls in place and expels the nose of the shell to open a path for the balls, which are then propelled out of the front of the shell without rupturing the casing (which falls to earth relatively unharmed and can be retrieved and reused). When the projectile is fired, it travels a pre-set distance along a ballistic trajectory, then the fuse ignites a relatively weak secondary charge (often black powder or cordite) in the base of the shell. Ī shrapnel shell consists of a shell casing filled with steel or lead balls suspended in a resin matrix, with a small explosive charge at the base of the shell. However, the shrapnel shell, named for Major General Henry Shrapnel of the British Royal Artillery, predates the modern high-explosive shell and operates by an entirely different process. The term "shrapnel" is commonly, although incorrectly from a technical standpoint, used to refer to fragments produced by any explosive weapon. When it bursts, it breaks into pieces that wound the skin and break the bones (of enemy soldiers) and blinds their eyes. Then fill in (with a gunpowder core) to a case of cast iron making a fragmentation bomb. įor this bomb you take tung oil, yin hsiu, salammoniac, chin chih, scallion juice, and heat them so as to coat a lot of iron pellets and bits of broken porcelain. Once the bomb explodes, the resulting fragments are capable of piercing the skin and blinding enemy soldiers. The fragmentation bombs were filled with iron pellets and pieces of broken porcelain. ![]() The use of fragmentation in bombs dates to the 14th century, and appears in the Ming Dynasty text Huolongjing. History An illustration of a fragmentation bomb from the 14th century Ming Dynasty text Huolongjing. These casing pieces are often incorrectly referred to as " shrapnel", particularly by non-military media sources. The resulting high-velocity fragments produced by either method are the main lethal mechanisms of these weapons, rather than the heat or overpressure caused by detonation, although offensive grenades are often constructed without a frag matrix. Preformed fragments can be of various shapes (spheres, cubes, rods, etc.) and sizes, and are normally held rigidly within some form of matrix or body until the high explosive (HE) filling is detonated. The correct term for these pieces is "fragmentation" "shards" or "splinters" can be used for non-preformed fragments. are dispersed and/or shattered by the detonation of the explosive filler. Diagram of S-mine in the delivery of steel ball fragmentsįragmentation is the process by which the casing, shot, or other components of an anti-personnel weapon, bomb, barrel bomb, land mine, IED, artillery, mortar, tank gun, or autocannon shell, rocket, missile, grenade, etc. The grooves covering the exterior of the grenade are used to aid in the gripping of the grenade when throwing. Grooved body of a Second World War-era U.S. For the internally held projectiles delivered by anti-personnel artillery, see Shrapnel shell. ![]() ![]() This article is about casing fragmentation of explosive weaponry.
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