|
?:reviewBody
|
-
Nitrocellulose is a chemical compound formed when cellulose, an organic polymer found in cotton fiber and wood, is nitrated by exposure to nitric acid or a similar agent. It's explosive and highly flammable, so in addition to being used to produce the first man-made plastic and celluloid photographic film in the 1800s, nitrocellulose became a key ingredient in the manufacture of ammunition. Since it's hazardous to store and transport, it's usually dampened with water, alcohol, or other liquid to make it more stable (at which point it's referred to as wetted nitrocellulose) then dried as needed for use. Alarms were raised by firearms manufacturers and gun rights advocates in mid-2016 when the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (ATF) announced the reclassification of wetted nitrocellulose from nonexplosive to high explosive: This prompted the usual cries of backdoor ammo ban from gun rights advocates, as well as objections by ammunition manufacturers that the announcement came with no warning and little guidance, posing problems for the industry: This, in turn, prompted ATF to reconsider the decision and, at least for the time being, rescind its July ruling in order to solicit and consider industry input. This addendum to the June 2016 announcement spells out where the issue stands as of 31 August 2016:
(en)
|
![[This page as RDF]](http://data.gesis.org/claimskg/static/rdf-icon.gif){kind=icon}