Editing RDX (section)

==Usage==
{{More citations needed section|date=January 2021}}
[[File:Bombing_up_106_Squadron_Lancaster_WWII_IWM_CH_12541.jpg|thumb|right|Armourers prepare to load {{cvt|1,000|lb|kg}} Medium Capacity bombs into the bomb-bay of an [[Avro Lancaster]] B Mark III of No. 106 Squadron [[Royal Air Force|RAF]] at [[RAF Metheringham]] before a major night raid on [[Frankfurt]]. The stencilled lettering around the circumference of each bomb reads "RDX/TNT".]]
RDX was widely used during [[World War II]], often in explosive mixtures with [[Trinitrotoluene|TNT]] such as [[Torpex]], [[Composition B]], Cyclotols, and H6. RDX was used in one of the first [[plastic explosive]]s. The [[bouncing bomb]] depth charges used in the "[[Operation Chastise|Dambusters Raid]]" each contained {{convert|6,600|lb}} of Torpex;<ref>Sweetman, John (2002) ''The Dambusters Raid''. London: Cassell Military Paperbacks. p. 144.</ref> The [[Tallboy (bomb)|Tallboy]] and [[Grand Slam (bomb)|Grand Slam]] bombs designed by [[Barnes Wallis]] also used Torpex.

RDX is believed to have been used in many bomb plots, including [[terrorist]] plots.

RDX is the base for a number of common military explosives:
*[[Composition A]]: Granular explosive consisting of RDX and plasticizing wax, such as composition A-3 (91% RDX coated with 9% wax)<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pichtel |first1=John |title=Distribution and Fate of Military Explosives and Propellants in Soil: A Review |journal=Applied and Environmental Soil Science |date=2012 |volume=2012 |issue=Article ID 617236 |page=3 |publisher=Hindawi|doi=10.1155/2012/617236 |doi-access=free }}</ref> and composition A-5 (98.5 to 99.1% RDX coated with 0.95 to 1.54% [[stearic acid]]).<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ritchie |first1=Robert |title=Tech. Report ARLCD-TR-84004, Improving Quality and Performance of Leads Loaded with Composition A-5 |date=March 1984 |publisher=Large Caliber Weapons Systems Laboratory, US Army ARDC |location=Dover, NJ |page=7 |url=http://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a140430.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215004357/http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a140430.pdf |url-status=live |archive-date=February 15, 2017 |access-date=November 9, 2018}}</ref>
*[[Composition B]]: Castable mixtures of 59.5% RDX and 39.4% [[trinitrotoluene|TNT]] with 1% wax as [[desensitizer]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=DOD |title=MIL-C-401E, Composition B, Rev. C |url=http://everyspec.com/MIL-SPECS/MIL-SPECS-MIL-C/MIL-C-401E_45540/ |website=EverySpec |access-date=November 9, 2018 |page=3 |date=March 13, 1974}}</ref>
*[[Composition C]]: The original composition C was used in World War II, but there have been subsequent variations including C-2, C-3, and [[C-4 (explosive)|C-4]]. C-4 consists of RDX (91%); a plasticizer, [[dioctyl sebacate]] (5.3%); and a binder, which is usually polyisobutylene (2.1%); and oil (1.6%).<ref name="atf">{{cite journal|last1=Reardon|first1=Michelle R.|last2=Bender|first2=Edward C.|year=2005|title=Differentiation of Composition C4 Based on the Analysis of the Process Oil|journal=Journal of Forensic Sciences|volume=50|issue=3|pages=1–7|doi=10.1520/JFS2004307|url=http://www.astm.org/DIGITAL_LIBRARY/JOURNALS/FORENSIC/PAGES/JFS2004307.htm|publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Forensic Science Laboratory|location=Ammendale, MD|issn=0022-1198}}</ref> 
*[[Composition CH-6]]: 97.5% RDX, 1.5% [[calcium stearate]], 0.5% [[polyisobutylene]], and 0.5% [[graphite]]<ref name=Hampton/>
*DBX (Depth Bomb Explosive): Castable mixture consisting of 21% RDX, 21% [[ammonium nitrate]], 40% TNT, and 18% powdered aluminium, developed during World War II, it was to be used in underwater munitions as a substitute for [[Torpex]] employing only half the amount of then-scarce RDX,<ref name="Army TM"/><ref>{{cite book |title= US Explosive Ordnance; Ordnance Pamphlet OP 1664 |volume= 1 |publisher= Navy Department, Bureau of Ordnance |location= Washington, D.C.|date= May 28, 1947 |pages= 3–4 |url= http://maritime.org/doc/ordnance/index.htm}} OP 1664 states 21% "aluminum nitrate", but the immediately following text refers to ammonium nitrate.</ref> as the supply of RDX became more adequate, however, the mixture was shelved
*[[Cyclotol]]: Castable mixture of RDX (50–80%) with TNT (20–50%) designated by the amount of RDX/TNT, such as Cyclotol 70/30
*[[High Blast Explosive|HBX]]: Castable mixtures of RDX, TNT, powdered aluminium, and D-2 [[wax]] with calcium chloride
*[[Composition H-6|H-6]]: Castable mixture of RDX, TNT, powdered aluminum, and [[paraffin wax]] (used as a [[phlegmatized|phlegmatizing agent]])
*[[Polymer-bonded explosive|PBX]]: RDX is also used as a major component of many [[polymer-bonded explosive]]s (PBX); RDX-based PBXs typically consist of RDX and at least thirteen different polymer/co-polymer binders.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Akhavan |first1=Jacqueline |title=The Chemistry of Explosives |date=2011 |publisher=Royal Society of Chemistry |location=Cambridge |isbn=978-1-84973-330-4 |page=14 |edition=3rd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2LfCDJZxey8C&q=PBX-9007&pg=PA138 |access-date=November 15, 2018}}</ref> Examples of RDX-based PBX formulations include, but are not limited to: PBX-9007, PBX-9010, PBX-9205, PBX-9407, PBX-9604, PBXN-106, PBXN-3, PBXN-6, PBXN-10, PBXN-201, PBX-0280, PBX Type I, PBXC-116, PBXAF-108, etc.{{citation needed|date=May 2016}}
*[[Semtex]] (trade name): Plastic demolition explosive containing RDX and [[PETN]] as major energetic components <ref>{{cite web |title=Semtex |url=https://pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/56841778#section=Top |website=PubChem Open Chemistry Database |publisher=Nat. Center for Biotechnology Information, US Library of Medicine |access-date=November 15, 2018}}</ref>
*[[Torpex]]: 42% RDX, 40% TNT, and 18% powdered aluminium; the mixture was designed during World War II and used mainly in underwater ordnance <ref name="Ordnance 1947">{{cite web|last1=Pekelney|first1=Richard|title=U.S. Explosive Ordnance (1947)|url=https://maritime.org/doc/ordnance/index.htm|website=San Francisco Maritime National Park|access-date=24 April 2017}}</ref>

Outside military applications, RDX is also used in [[demolition|controlled demolition]] to raze structures.<ref name="Beebe Pherson 2011">{{cite book |last1=Beebe |first1=S. M. |last2=Pherson |first2=R. H. |title=Cases in Intelligence Analysis: Structured Analytic Techniques in Action |publisher=SAGE Publications |year=2011 |isbn=978-1-4833-0517-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W--q_DAOEQ0C&pg=PA182 |access-date=2017-04-24 |page=182}}</ref> The demolition of the [[Jamestown Bridge]] in the U.S. state of [[Rhode Island]] was one instance where RDX [[shaped charge]]s were used to remove the span.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dot.ny.gov/regional-offices/region1/projects/lake-champlain-bridge/repository/Demo_LCB_12-12-09.pdf|title=Demolition of the Lake Champlain Bridge|date=2009-12-12|website=[[New York State Department of Transportation]]|page=13|access-date=2018-05-01}}</ref>