The U.S. Military Relies on One Louisiana Factory. It Blew Up.

The Wall Street Journal ^ | April 26, 2023 | Gordon Lubold

[kiryandil]

Decades of consolidation have left the Pentagon vulnerable to mishaps—including when the sole maker of a crucial type of gunpowder went offline

MINDEN, La.—Nearly two years ago, an errant spark inside a mill caused an explosion so big it destroyed all the building’s equipment and blew a corrugated fiberglass wall 100 feet.

It also shut down the sole domestic source of an explosive the Department of Defense relies on to produce bullets, mortar shells, artillery rounds and Tomahawk missiles.

The ramshackle facility makes the original form of gunpowder, known today as black powder, a highly combustible material with hundreds of military applications. The product, for which there is no substitute, is used in small quantities in munitions to ignite more powerful explosives.

No one was hurt in the June 2021 blast. But the factory remains offline, unable to deliver its single vital component to either commercial or Pentagon customers.

[Ancesthntr]

“ Just another way bloated Fed.gov f***s the whole economy”
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“Everything the government touches turns to shit.”

- Ringo Starr

[GingisK]

No, some people like to help others overcome their lack of understanding. An informed society is a better society. I fully expect you to jump on my case should I get something in your domain wrong.

I'm not a chemist either. I made my first batch of black powder back in 1958. High school chemistry occurred in 1966. I continued self education in a lot of things since those times.