List of explosives used during World War II
Almost all the common explosives listed here were mixtures of several common components:
- Ammonium picrate
- TNT (Trinitrotoluene)
- PETN (Pentaerythritol tetranitrate)
- RDX
- Powdered aluminium.
This is only a partial list; there were many others. Many of these compositions are now obsolete and only encountered in legacy munitions and unexploded ordnance.
| Name | Composition | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Amatol | Ammonium nitrate and TNT | Extensively used in bombs, shells, depth charges and naval mines |
| Baronal | Barium nitrate, TNT and powdered aluminium | |
| Baratol | Barium nitrate and TNT | Used in British hand grenades. Also used as the low velocity explosive lens in the implosion type nuclear weapon, Fat Man |
| Composition A | 88.3% RDX and 11.7% plasticizer | |
| Composition B | RDX, TNT and wax | Used as the high velocity explosive lens in the implosion type nuclear weapon, Fat Man |
| Composition H6 | 45% RDX, 30% TNT, 20% powdered aluminium and 5% wax | Replaced Torpex for use in naval applications. |
| DBX (Depth Bomb Explosive) | 21% RDX, 21% ammonium nitrate, 40% TNT, 18% powdered aluminium | An alternative for Torpex, that used less of the strategic material RDX |
| Minol | 40% TNT, 40% ammonium nitrate and 20% powdered aluminium (Minol-2) | Developed by the British Royal Navy and used in torpedoes, depth charges and naval mines. Unsuitable for shells because of a risk of detonation if subjected to very high accelerations. |
| Octol | 75% HMX (cyclotetramethylene-tetranitramine) and 25% TNT | Still in use |
| Pentolites | 50% PETN and 50% TNT | |
| Picratol | 52% ammonium picrate and 48% TNT | Used in armour-piercing shells and bombs as insensitive to shock |
| PIPE | 81% PETN and 19% oil | |
| PTX-1 | 30% RDX, 50% tetryl and 20% TNT | |
| PTX-2 | 41-44% RDX, 26-28% PETN and 28-33% TNT | |
| PVA-4 | 90% RDX, 8% PVA and 2% dibutyl phthalate | |
| RIPE | 85% RDX and 15% oil | |
| Tetrytols | 70% Tetryl and 30% TNT | |
| Torpex | 42% RDX, 40% TNT and 18% powdered aluminium | Developed for use in torpedoes, it was especially effective at producing destructive, underwater explosions. |
| Trialen 105 | 15% RDX, 70% TNT and 15% powdered aluminium | Used by the Luftwaffe |
| Explosive “D” | Ammonium picrate | US Army/Navy |
| Type 91 Explosive | Trinitroanisol (TNA) | Japanese Army/Navy |
Two nuclear explosives, containing mixtures of uranium and plutonium, respectively, were also used at the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki