ammonium nitrate
noun1
Chemistry, Inorganic chemistry, Natural sciences, Physical sciences The ammonium salt of nitric acid, NH₄NO₃; it is used in fertilizers and explosives (notoriously in improvised explosive devices, though its main importance is as an explosive in its own right and in mixtures such as amatol and ANFO).
- According to the Lebanese government, about 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate fertilizer was stored in a warehouse on the Beirut waterfront and caught fire, later exploding.2020 August 5, John Ismay, “What Is Ammonium Nitrate, Blamed in the Beirut Explosion?”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:
- Derived terms
- ammonite, ANFO
- Related terms
- amatol, ammonite, ammonitrate