Detonation of explosives

1. A chemical detonator including:

a cylindrical housing, having an open end and a closed end; and

a detonation element located in the housing, into which housing a shock tube for initiating the detonation element intrudes,

the housing and the shock tube each being of plastic material, the shock tube intruding into, and being welded to, the open end of the housing to hold the shock tube at a desired spacing from the detonation element.

2. The chemical detonator according to claim 1 , wherein the open end of the housing is narrowed into a neck where the housing is welded to the shock tube.

3. The chemical detonator according to claim 1 , wherein the detonation element is a time delay element.

4. The chemical detonator according to claim 3 , wherein the time delay element comprises:

a timer charge in contact with a pyrotechnic sealing charge for igniting the pyrotechnic sealing charge;

a priming charge in contact with the timer charge; and

a base charge in contact with the priming charge, the pyrotechnic sealing charge in the detonator being spaced by a desired spacing from the open end of the shock tube where the shock tube intrudes into the housing, and being exposed to the end of the shock tube.

5. The chemical detonator according to claim 4 , wherein the timer charge, the priming charge, the base charge and the pyrotechnic sealing charge are located in a rigid casing, in which they are held captive in series and in abutment, the casing being tubular and open-ended at least at one end thereof, the pyrotechnic charge being exposed to the end of the shock tube via an open end of the casing.

6. The chemical detonator according to claim 5 , wherein the casing is made of aluminium or aluminium alloys.

7. The chemical detonator according to claim 1 , wherein the housing is in the form of a plastic moulding.

8. The chemical detonator according to claim 7 , wherein the housing is made of an injection-moulded material selected from the group consisting of polyethylene, polypropylene and polyamide, the material of the housing having a lower melting point than that of the shock tube.

9. The chemical detonator according to claim 1 , wherein the housing is provided with a resiliently flexible clipping mechanism at its end remote from the shock tube, the clipping mechanism comprising a transversely extending limb spaced axially outwardly of, and connected at one end thereof to, the closed end of the housing, for clipping one or more acceptor shock tubes in place adjacent the base charge, the base charge being located in the housing, at or adjacent the closed end of the housing.

10. A method of making a chemical detonator according to any claim 1 , the method including the steps of:

inserting the detonation element into the open end of the housing so that the element nests in the housing;

inserting the end of the shock tube into the open end of the housing so that it is spaced from the detonation element by a desired spacing for initiation of the detonation element; and

welding the open end of the housing to the shock tube to hold the shock tube in position in the open end of the housing.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the step of welding the open end of the housing to the shock tube acts to form a neck in the housing, being conducted using a plurality of welding heads so that the neck is circumferentially welded to the shock tube along the full perimeter of the neck and of the shock tube.

12. The method according to claim 10 , which further includes the steps of:

forming the housing by injection moulding;

assembling the detonation element; and

inserting the detonation element into the open end of the housing to nest in the closed end of the housing, before the step of welding.