Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II
The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II
The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II
Ebook265 pages3 hours

The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars

()

Read preview

About this ebook

The noted historian offers “a compelling sociohistorical account of an often overlooked yet critical” WWII explosive twice as powerful as TNT (Choice).

During the early years of World War II, American ships crossing the Atlantic were virtually defenseless against German U-boats. Bombs and torpedoes fitted with TNT barely dented the hulls of Axis naval vessels. Then, seemingly overnight, a top-secret manufacturing plant appeared near Kingsport, Tennessee, producing a sugar-white substance called Research Department Explosive, code name RDX.

Twice as deadly as TNT and overshadowed only by the atomic bomb, RDX proved to be pivotal in the Battle of the Atlantic and directly contributed to the Allied victory in WWII. In The Secret History of RDX, Colin F. Baxter documents the journey of the super-explosive from conceptualization at Woolwich Arsenal in England to mass production at Holston Ordnance Works in east Tennessee. Baxter examines the debates between RDX advocates and their opponents and explores the use of the explosive in the bomber war over Germany, in the naval war in the Atlantic, and as a key element in the trigger device of the atomic bomb.

Drawing on archival records and interviews with individuals who worked at the Kingsport “powder plant,” Baxter illuminates both the explosive’s military significance and its impact on the lives of ordinary Americans involved in the war industry. Much more than a technical account, this study assesses the social and economic impact of the military-industrial complex on small communities on the home front.

LanguageEnglish
Release dateMay 18, 2018
ISBN9780813175317
The Secret History of RDX: The Super-Explosive that Helped Win World War II

Related to The Secret History of RDX

Related ebooks

Related articles

Reviews for The Secret History of RDX

Rating: 0 out of 5 stars
0 ratings

0 ratings0 reviews

What did you think?

Tap to rate

Review must be at least 10 words

    Book preview

    The Secret History of RDX - Colin F. Baxter

    ïdbook_preview_excerpt.html\n$G`0)n [J"$B#S0o'mOї{f$Kd,={?_~qp%k۬n|6\|񿺩|9 ._6]]\=z˫o[} ]~t2uvL،˗.5|Ule޽`xksģN͛9<Ʌn}tbTonm&em0l,,.ɮއ Ul]TΦY97WOL  <(56n)ڔ1vtX9ڤ>N2ftj.0jc+ Y&2DqʚikW5 Rk_l-͛z::%!?fw{祙 M Wu֬9^]|f2YV,Y i#_\97I| ]3eHo湛9t01'n\UKڗA0/}9j*qzyfr Cڪs+HW-3;18(6o3lkbl q j ύ(AMMG{<.B& G5u޿1ϟA-=\]31t~rk{ejzXri ܟ}1Xy%h,vB3W5P\';vwNmոz̩]<-.'Dx`>.LOBc|kՉ9u~*P}~Ƿrfhdq'yj šYOL`ɛ2U7UA&:I]ׂn E&MVvʖ\'5gb~OXѼ+M{ b.bL:9deߥ 0)aԼzr΋g/_' R",7SSsmCv0y=}ݑE\}-~rNrq|rR?}`jT?nÐ 1h6< W%X$;\ޫ-(3vK[5bӃq59=nIC+b4ʑ-mje1a<{tw9L l 5Yz~O ս1yEsҚ^@қMIl8$7\ !JK|^8l ypGO1ArSUysx7֛zt-Q# ذ LV{y#0Rj)ѣ"A!=)t h[p8eAsɨ:WZ%%9DDYn5?x:+>X%7Z%g9gF<bU[`g+5VBp4N"\5 "Vĕɶ{*o]x \b>2'y+9ͯ?woEyWW-Q$3{9Sߢw #Y|pTv4vA]Y/ӓ˓srpy}8?8v篆₪%Y-bK #nJnчnp̞o޺5E`K ]NDU:NYg0pItcv_<Z-_zPD:~AUoap& &ձN8M("sv$AC￈fʣ)FHu c9dG4eo=9JVY0y6W~DQV G #y #E8Kt_ev@D"j/j3##_-eJ1zL:6'.H'* aEDCfARs\.8b1M,"&%s=y*( y`xM3d@{gBw'gl-٦ U1-1a [+w'^x\~MLrXKmT6 uvW) HKOPYM%ƞǴ|A6=HWQ]tn'l EK_ِL u oBFWCaF2"aC CWb鑙eiCwSuݺL_jyN}VpRaV.q٭QgE,QL8҈K`I0]QgBRq`..ߘ'6ͼ9*ͱ7 D_J+55WІH)KSs ,w`4TZ9M"_F4YIe;4Uj2ߢX3}bKAݦ~WfYmmoHm=O`҉[6=9r$ɔe C@:3)^/K JRQaG  Ba`XPmAο"G@n .Mf )a;{q-1 B/&H ,4\Z@7oAҩ9ǞM"BlF"qI(ZaA{RG"m};ϑ`8j ]3Rȅ#CY ^HۖSP!&^t\8- ȏ4爌=[SG(!vϙ *+`56 @|_G%1KXM Į׸` +dEpM(?@4N^m>&RhkAϾ^N|gfjbN8C31)_Het "Χ3 4OV# h=|<Y?:9z*ٖ p4EN$y\2pCJ Q3 G?{= ΀;kp*rMtɢ~RDMmI(IjV*4~(۬"{ g]@#dh8)RN62FVјd.5N9k^B&V:yF)4cEGiC^ gO 0ɮ\| o4 U.B %t&" 0{ !+vtlTΠ@l+IJg~*p'nx-$R].1#2'U?/%#c-#%:M6d#P% վ Q4%3Vv 2z&퉩}0 ZdDsIYbw|$*'-]:D/c'ZHnZ Ǵ~] 4\jp2eY#V!̱$ GBI(K J9q]ruR IN䒔0547b‚яÇуd2s <@hu;&dمLJ)8Z2%q?95H<"c /i 9L~΋2Ma0Tm;!ky,/.W -]v&m3*,]>Q%WB%d4KFƨ ʳ3I$|raU-\!R:dSn)'d'̇=SHw3!Yޓ~]] w zׅFNWST!c|ٓ)JǽUCNf]d씬YA=1*gLQ5$VfYHa9H_j,~8uV&r ćHvّ._A!(Q%޳h!^ f%т]ny^ps̢z`oV~5 U۵,[j~)> Ms\ r1#("PkTڦf"UzHc,:h /`7PUilP̖>-fY*iYi)} [-^K*{Q qMӛR@"fe|B>&r NnV-k Wj :& O!w#c tTR <}1_<]HŹK9]IL8 «+Eݝ5 Sʶ01K 8ZԐXbNv`j1ϭ4O%spJ *_m>yԒM@ODw0E::U ?g;/l6JX Mk;WLʼn(N&NA뮺 u$v[|], -ka/݄( .IѰ7+ɜrv"0N/*mdτ̉)b(lVpw v ЌϪoNo9([e5Ib0P=b$$? G_/}V|0a%._A3K2 LhYeb@yd|*ACBݔؽh2Ѵ8^ϱYqmKER̾$[eW"~q+@۳trOxO.N lxm^Nyrvy[;aI.3E72kJp̲H^,,O9DEuowuhY2?<"՗m5LM?/r"ED"iF@ ;Z}1;wuЗtHԿ^AckMڄCvuyZSXoZwZ+ttO5l Ӥ;Pd.w&W]QKn׸E!˰fs&eɘBRʈlbv^nt2"Q›L|m%Է 'nz]tK:z2*|LIw#ɺc#Y',nd 6|[~Wɾ`$+]b'MH}g|g&Py& ,UaყW".e! !|pP ) ܐJ4 @/٨8&J&xmKq/m2F,hɝƦ]dwѓt`adYĊxo'"ws/~*Z\wN8QF ,LG|@KaZ`PXōZR5Kba2Z ^f/99%1 3.TI q=]2?Yz9 Եd50P ܈)erKex-P}S%<•L}&}A|uosMv9t8C Y:JcqoxG\#*r֢ޤ7оuHGZԎmf|?Qcj3 v}hF$nOFyڧؚ&RW_-жJ4JhQWh !uu@#@̨jiCt/5/m IkHDck c1<1IRjк!0k'LV]f1hȃ!ag{2pb/k66=c|WHf-9H֜ yHc-\׈O2JcNycgP:"i\cApT|GS&OJ,\x 9lk,)O%&Z҆WXgyE!D!W^867LV\5]6_ eȫZinu8:r3bBu-  7cۖu3V}"',)cw\>0CZ"5 K'NZ%s{`ut/I) N[y q2C;HBp\v}tR˶ 7ol}G[ ?r{?%I(\ 1zjqz*R8ܚֆFm`h$`DmILt/:/)ͼU+h5z4v ']Է*]3E*=g~Wf_C U /s<"/ 1|I`fĨՄYXmɥl!O#%rFVq_bCpV1aOWW(S6Dl (ƂqW$^ SHLo}:<>yf?Sl#$ML8ۑҲ
    Enjoying the preview?
    Page 1 of 1