Black Powder High Energy Materials: Propellants, Explosives and Pyrotechnicsby Jai Prakash Agrawal Black powder is a mixture of potassium nitrate or sodium nitrate, charcoal and sulfur. It is the oldest known explosive and has a history of about 750 years. It was in use worldwide by about 1870 as a propellant in firearms as the bursting charge in artillery projectiles and used as a blasting...