Editing Cordite (section)

=== Replacements for gunpowder (black powder)===
[[Gunpowder]], an explosive mixture of [[sulfur]], [[charcoal]] and [[potassium nitrate]] (also known as [[saltpetre]]), was the original propellant employed in [[firearm]]s  and [[fireworks]]. It was used from about the 10th or 11th century onward, but it had disadvantages, including the large amount of smoke it produced. With the 19th-century development of various "nitro explosives", based on the reaction of [[nitric acid]] mixtures on materials such as [[cellulose]] and [[glycerin]], a search began for a replacement for gunpowder.<ref>{{cite book |last=Tucker |first=Spencer C. |author-link=Spencer C. Tucker |title=Almanac of American Military History |date=2013 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |location=Santa Barbara, CA |isbn=9781598845303 |page=1170}}</ref>