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Pyrotol was an explosive available for a time after World War I.[1] It was reprocessed from military surplus, with a typical composition of 60% smokeless powder, 34% sodium nitrate, and 6% of 40% nitroglycerin dynamite.[2] Usually used in combination with dynamite, it created an incendiary blast. Since it was very inexpensive, it was often used by farmers to remove tree stumps and clear ditches.[3] The substance was known for being used to commit the Bath School bombing in 1927.[4][5] Distribution of pyrotol for farm use was discontinued in 1928, due to exhaustion of the supply of surplus explosives.[6]
Pyrotol was intended to make a use after the war for a large surplus of smokeless powder. It was manufactured in a contract awarded to the DuPont Company and was created in three DuPont plants: Gibbstown, N.J., Barksdale, Wisconsin, and DuPont, Washington. The active ingredient of these cartridges, Pyrotol, was free, and included in the cartridge's price; the consumer paid for the preparation and freight of these cartridges.[7]
Pyrotol was said to cause no ill effects, like headaches, or staining hands or clothing, although the validity of this statement is unknown. A 6-ounce (170 g) cartridge of pyrotol was said to be as powerful as an 8-ounce (230 g) cartridge of dynamite, and came in 50-pound (23 kg) boxes containing 160 cartridges of the substance.[8]
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