Gunpowder is a type of low detonation velocity explosive. The medicine that can be ignited by sparks and flames is one of China’s the Four Great Inventions. But do you know who invented gunpowder, one of China’s the Four Great Inventions? How was gunpowder invented? Chasing Ben Shuoyuan, now, please come back to that era with the editor to see who invented gunpowder and how it was invented.
The invention of gunpowder is the result of people’s long-term alchemy and pharmaceutical practice, with a history of over a thousand years to this day. Gunpowder; Suspected inventor&# 8221; They are Ge Hong, Tao Hongjing, and Sun Simiao.
The first person was Ge Hong from the Eastern Jin Dynasty. According to the “Biography of Ge Hong in the Book of Jin”, Ge Hong was a famous alchemist and pharmacologist who wrote extensively throughout his life, including the inner and outer chapters of “Baopu Zi”, “Biography of Immortals”, “Behind the Elbow”, and so on. It is said that he invented gunpowder based on&# 8221; Using nitration as a coagulant for water; One language. The saltpeter here is the most important raw material for making gunpowder: first, the realgar is converted into water using saltpeter, and then solidified to produce a long-lived medicine. The mixture of saltpeter and realgar can explode when exposed to high temperature or impact.
The second person is Tao Hongjing, a native of the Southern Liang Dynasty. According to the “Biography of Tao Hongjing in the Book of Liang”, like Ge Hong, Tao Hongjing is also a famous alchemist and pharmacist, and has authored works such as “Annotations to the Classic of Materia Medica” and “True Spiritual Position and Karma Map”. According to the Annotations to the Classic of Materia Medica:&# 8221; If you hold salt and snow without ice, and burn them vigorously, the purple and blue smoke will rise and still turn into ashes. Continuously boiling like pure nitrate, clouds are true saltpeter. This is also known as mirabilite. Today, mirabilite is made from refined mirabilite&# 8221;
The third person is Sun Simiao from the Sui and Tang dynasties. There are biographies of Sun Simiao in both the old and new “Book of Tang”. He was a famous alchemist and pharmacologist during the Sui and Tang dynasties, known as; Medicine King; He is renowned for his works such as “Qian Jin Yao Fang” and “Qian Jin Yi Fang”. During the process of refining pills, Sun Simiao mixed sulfur, saltpeter, and charcoal to make medicinal powder.
So, how was gunpowder invented?
The invention of gunpowder has been around for over a thousand years. It was invented by ancient alchemists who sought immortality by refining pills for a long time. However, the elixir of immortality was not refined, but instead was invented. It was purely accidental to strike a straight line. The process of the invention of gunpowder is roughly as follows: alchemists have mastered certain alchemy techniques (actually chemical preparation techniques) through long-term alchemy and pharmacy. They use sulfur (sulfur), nitrate (potassium nitrate), and aristolochia (containing carbon) as raw materials in a certain proportion, and undergo complex mixing and heating to refine.
During the refining process, combustion often occurs. Alchemists in the Tang Dynasty learned that the ignition of sulfur, nitrate, and carbon mixture (referred to as “Fuhuo” in ancient times) would cause intense combustion. Through long-term refining practice, alchemists in the Tang Dynasty learned an important experience that sulfur, nitrate, and carbon could form a highly flammable medicine, which is known as the “igniting medicine” or gunpowder – gunpowder has actually been invented.