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NITROGLYCERINE

     MATERIAL               EQUIPMENT

     distilled water        eye-dropper

     table salt             100 ml beaker

     sodium bicarbonate     200-300 ml beakers (2)

     concentrated nitric    ice bath container
     acid (13 ml)           ( a plastic bucket serves well )

     concentrated sulfuric  centigrade thermometer
     acid (39 ml)

     glycerine              blue litmus paper

1. Place 150 ml of distilled water into one of the 200-300 ml beakers.
2. In the other 200-300 ml beaker, place 150 ml of distilled water and about a spoonful of sodium bicarbonate, and stir them until the sodium bicarbonate dissolves. Do not put so much sodium bicarbonate in the water so that some remains undissolved.
3. Create an ice bath by half filling the ice bath container with ice, and adding table salt. This will cause the ice to melt, lowering the overall temperature.
4. Place the 100 ml beaker into the ice bath, and pour the 13 ml of concentrated nitric acid into the 100 ml beaker. Be sure that the beaker will not spill into the ice bath, and that the ice bath will not overflow into the beaker when more materials are added to it. Be sure to have a large enough ice bath container to add more ice. Bring the temperature of the acid down to about 20 degrees centigrade or less.
5. When the nitric acid is as cold as stated above, slowly and carefully add the 39 ml of concentrated sulfuric acid to the nitric acid. Mix the two acids together, and cool the mixed acids to 10 degrees centigrade. It is a good idea to start another ice bath to do this.
6. With the eyedropper, slowly put the glycerine into the mixed acids, one drop at a time. Hold the thermometer along the top of the mixture where the mixed acids and glycerine meet.

   DO NOT ALLOW THE TEMPERATURE TO GET ABOVE 30 DEGREES CENTIGRADE; IF THE TEMPERATURE RISES ABOVE THIS TEMPERATURE, WATCH OUT !!

   The glycerine will start to nitrate immediately, and the temperature will immediately begin to rise. Add glycerine until there is a thin layer of glycerine on top of the mixed acids. It is always safest to make any explosive in small quantities.

7. Stir the mixed acids and glycerine for the first ten minutes of nitration, adding ice and salt to the ice bath to keep the temperature of the solution in the 100 ml beaker well below 30 degrees centigrade. Usually, the nitroglycerine will form on the top of the mixed acid solution, and the concentrated sulfuric acid will absorb the water produced by the reaction.
8. When the reaction is over, and when the nitroglycerine is well below 30 degrees centigrade, slowly and carefully pour the solution of nitroglycerine and mixed acid into the distilled water in the beaker in step 1. The nitroglycerine should settle to the bottom of the beaker, and the water-acid solution on top can be poured off and disposed of. Drain as much of the acid- water solution as possible without disturbing the nitroglycerine.
9. Carefully remove the nitroglycerine with a clean eye-dropper, and place it into the beaker in step 2. The sodium bicarbonate solution will eliminate much of the acid, which will make the nitroglycerine more stable, and less likely to explode for no reason, which it can do. Test the nitroglycerine with the litmus paper until the litmus stays blue. Repeat this step if necessary, and use new sodium bicarbonate solutions as in step 2.
10. When the nitroglycerine is as acid-free as possible, store it in a clean container in a safe place. The best place to store nitroglycerine is far away from anything living, or from anything of any value. Nitroglycerine can explode for no apparent reason, even if it is stored in a secure cool place.