Impact of Gunpowder. The first use of gunpowder in bombs in the military did not revolutionize war. About 919 gunpowder was used in the form of a flamethrower. When explosive gunpowder did appear, real explosive bombs, rather than merely incendiary bombs, were produced in large quantities. As the proportion of saltpeter in the gunpowder mixture was increased, up to 75 percent of the gunpowder was saltpeter, roughly the proportion used in modern gunpowder. Upon ignition, gunpowder of this type rapidly created three thousand times its bulk in gas, reaching a temperature of 3888ºC. The speed of the occurrence was made possible because oxygen was in the saltpeter within the mixture, so that no oxygen needed to be sucked in from the nearby air. When the Chinese reached this stage, "barrel guns" and cannons became available.

Protoflamethrowers. A flamethrower is a device to produce...