Ammonium Nitrate

[Tom G. Laury]

What a tragedy. Nobody seems to have known of the danger.

[BEES4U]

Some more details:
Disasters
Main article: Ammonium nitrate disasters
Ammonium nitrate decomposes into gases including oxygen when heated (non-explosive reaction); however, ammonium nitrate can be induced to decompose explosively by detonation. Large stockpiles of the material can be a major fire risk due to their supporting oxidation, and may also detonate, as happened in the Texas City disaster of 1947, which led to major changes in the regulations for storage and handling.

There are two major classes of incidents resulting in explosions:
In the first case, the explosion happens by the mechanism of shock to detonation transition. The initiation happens by an explosive charge going off in the mass, by the detonation of a shell thrown into the mass, or by detonation of an explosive mixture in contact with the mass. The examples are Kriewald, Morgan (present-day Sayreville, New Jersey) Oppau, Tessenderlo and Traskwood.
In the second case, the explosion results from a fire that spreads into the ammonium nitrate itself (Texas City, Brest, Oakdale), or from a mixture of ammonium nitrate with a combustible material during the fire (Repauno, Cherokee, Nadadores). The fire must be confined at least to a degree for successful transition from a fire to an explosion (a phenomenon known as "deflagration to detonation transition", or DDT). Pure, compact AN is stable and very difficult to initiate.[citation needed] However, there are numerous cases when even impure AN did not explode in a fire.[citation needed]
Ammonium nitrate explosives were used in the Oklahoma City bombing.

Ammonium nitrate decomposes in temperatures normally well above 200°C. However the presence of impurities (organic and/or inorganic) will often reduce the temperature point when heat is being generated. Once the AN has started to decompose then a Runaway reaction will normally occur as the heat of decomposition is very large. AN evolves so much heat that this runaway reaction is not normally possible to stop. This is a well-known hazard with some types of N-P-K Fertilizers, and is responsible for the loss of several cargo ships.

While filming an episode of the popular science show Mythbusters, 500 pounds (230 kg) of ammonium nitrate was detonated to show the resultant effect. The subsequent large explosion broke a few windows that were one mile away in Yolo county, California.[3]
Regards,
Ernie

[Camp9]

I hope you all know the gov'mint 'bots have earmarked this thread for further perusal by an ATF or homeland security agent. I hope none of y'all have any worries about that. Me, I'm getting out my tin foil hat and keeping an eye out for black helicopters......
Sheri

Let them come, no worry here. Probably all farmers are on their list anyway.

Camp

[edenhillapiaries]

Hello Folks,

I have never heard of using ammonium nitrate in this fashion, but I can tell you that it is a wonderful source of nitrogen for fruit growers. It is quite fast acting and less prone to leach or volitize (unlike urea) and gives the fruit trees a boost right when they need it. After Oklahoma City this material has become harder to find and more complicated to handle. Buying it in bulk requires a copy of your drivers license and it cannot be transported without a hazmat endorsement. Much more complicated than it used to be, but well worth the effort for anyone growing fruit trees. It is always a shame when a few bad eggs make it hard on the rest of us.

[BEES4U]

It is quite fast acting and less prone to leach or volitize (unlike urea)
Ammonium nitrate does not have to be broken down by the microbes in the soil solution
It will leach out easily with to much irrigation.
Urea will also leach out .
Volitize? No, niether one has the physical properties of becoming volitile.
Anhydrous ammonia wil volitize and it is hungry for any source of water. That's why it's injected into moist soil.
We are having some major problems of our ground water being contaminated by farmers that are applying excess N to their crops.
Recently the avocado growers were informed that their application N was too high and it did not benifit the trees growth. That's a substantial savings in fertilizer.
Most plants thrive at 200 ppm of N in the leaf and anything over that ppm is a waste.
Ernie

[Gabriel]

Ammonium Nitrate is use to sleep bees when
1- You want to change a hive from a place to another that is very near (5 or 10 Mts)
2- When you want to introduce a queen in a hive.
Is like the bees don´t remember nothing
Gabriel

[BEES4U]

AKA: Nirous oxide that is used in dentistry.
Ernie