OA20960A - Canister assembly with protected cap well and booster explosive comprising the same. - Google Patents

Abstract

A booster explosive (10) comprises a canister body 12 within which is a cap well (20) having disposed therein a detonator (24). A protective sleeve (28) encloses the cap well (20) except for that portion of the cap well, the active portion (20d), which encloses the explosive end section (24a) of detonator (24). The protective sleeve serves to attenuate the force of shock waves from nearby prior explosions acting on the detonator (24). An annular air space (32) may be provided between protective sleeve (28) and cap well (20) to further attenuate the force of such shock waves. Attenuation of the shock waves reduces the likelihood of damage to detonators (24) by prior nearby explosions.

Description

CANISTER ASSEMBLY WITH PROTECTED CAP WELL AND BOOSTER EXPLOSIVE COMPRISING THE SAME

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

[0001] The présent invention concerns novel canister assemblies for cast booster explosives, and cast booster explosives comprising the canister assemblies. Cast booster explosives are typically utilized to detonate normally cap-insensitive explosives such as ammonium nitrate and fuel oil (ANFO) bulk explosives.

Description of Related Art

[0002] Cast booster explosives are normally cast with a fuse tunnel and a cap well, the tunnel providing a passageway for a fuse connected to a detonator (cap), which is received within the cap well.

[0003] The prior art shows canisters for cast booster explosives having fuse tunnels and cap wells as part of a canister body into which a flowable explosive is placed to cure or harden. For example, U.S. Patent 9,115,963, assigned to the assignée of the présent application, discloses a plastic canister having a fuse tunnel (22) formed integrally with the canister body (12) and a separate cap well (14) which may be secured within the canister body by means of a cap well mounting fixture (28). U.S. Patent 6,311,621 discloses an electronîc circuit assembly in an encapsulation which may be enclosed within, e.g., a métal sleeve. In addition, see U.S. Patent 4,334,476 issued June 15, 1982 to John T. Day et al. for Primer Cup, U.S. Patent 3,183,836 issued May 18, 1965 to G.L. Griffith for Canister For Cast Primer,

U.S. Patent 3,955,504 issued May 11,1976 to Russell H. Romney for Explosive Booster Casing, U.S. Patent 3,407,730 issued on October 29, 1968 to G.L. Griffith for Retainer For Holding A Detonator In A Detonator Réceptacle And Explosive Cartridge Container Containing The Same, and U.S. Patent 6,112,666 issued on September 5, 2000 to C.M. Murray et al. for Explosives Booster and Primer.

[0004] U.S. Patent 4,425,849 issued on January 17, 1984 to Gordon K.

Jorgenson for Primer Assembly discloses an explosive primer assembly which utilizes (Figure 2) a primer explosive composition 6 which is initiated by a detonator 12 disposed within a cap well 8. Initiation is effectuated by a wire conductor 14 which passes through a toroid 10 which effectuâtes the initiation by electromagnetic induction. The embodiment illustrated in Figure 4 (column 3, line 61 et seq.) encases detonator 12 within a tube 35 in order to provide a stable attachment of body 29 and its cover 30 to the cartridge of primer explosive shown in Figure 4. Tube 35 has barbs 5 36 to help retain body 29 in place when tube element 35 is pressed into the cartridge.

[0005] GB Patent Application 2 257 774 A to Hartley Hodgson published on January 20, 1993 discloses a shaped explosive charge 13 (Fig. 2) having a métal barrier plate 1 having (Fig.2) a cup-like deflector 4 and peripheral annular slots 6.

Barrier plate 1 serves to deflect to the periphery of explosive charge 13 the explosive force of disc-like initiating charge 10 (Fig. 2). Charge 10 is initiated by detonator 17/ explosive pellet 18.

[0006] GB Patent 2 368 626 B to Wenbo Yang et al. published on September 8, 2004 is one of several Schlumberger patent publications showing provision of a 15 shock-absorbing barrier to shield the explosives of well-perforating guns from the shock waves generated by adjacent explosives. Two basic shielding techniques are disclosed. One, as illustrated in Figure 3, is to enclose the perforating gun explosive charges 506 with a shock-impeding powder material 510 emplaced within sleeve 512. The shock-impeding material may be a porous cernent comprising a mixture of 20 cernent and hollow microspheres (see the paragraph bridging pages 9 and 10 of this patent). Another shock-impeding technique is illustrated in Figure 7 of the patent where barriers 410 are interposed between shaped charges 412. This GB patent and some other Schlumberger references, including UK Patent GB 2 398 094 B and U.S. Patent 6,896,059, show the broad concept of shielding explosives from shock waves generated by adjacent explosives. The pertinent portions of these three patents are substantially similar to GB 2 368 626 B and thus are merely cumulative to each other.

[0007] In use, as is well known in the art, cast booster explosives are normally lowered into a borehole, which may be as deep as 10, 20 or 30 feet (3, 6.1 and 9.1 30 meters, respectively) or deeper. More than one booster may be loaded into a given borehole and in such case the two or more boosters are normally positioned at different depths within a given borehole. The booster explosive(s) are employed to ini20960 tiate a bulk explosive such as an ANFO slurry or émulsion which is poured into the borehole.

[0008] As is also well-known, booster explosives are utilized in blasting Systems which may comprise numerous boreholes filled with a suitable cap-insensitive explosive such as an ANFO slurry or émulsion. It is important that the sequence of explosions from borehole to borehole be carefully timed so that each borehole is detonated at an appropriate time in order to maximize blasting efficiency. If a downstream borehole is intended to be detonated after an adjacent or nearby upstream borehole, it is possible that the shockwave from the détonation of the up- stream borehole may damage the detonator in the downstream borehole, so as to prevent the downstream borehole from initiating. The circuitry of electronic delay detonators is particularly vulnérable to damage by the shock waves generated by prior upstream or adjacent explosions. Failure of any borehole to detonate is of course highly undesirable. Détonation failures resuit in uninitiated explosives in muck piles, présent severe safety hazards and greatly reduce the efficiency of the blasting System.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Generally, the présent invention provides a canister assembly and a booster explosive comprising the canister assembly. The canister assembly has a cap well which is protected by a shock-absorbing barrierto reduce the possibility of damage to the detonator lodged within the cap well by shock waves generated by prior adjacent explosions. The shock wave protection for the detonator is attained by enclosing a substantial portion of the cap well within a shock-absorbing barrier which may comprise a protective sleeve, while leaving unshielded an active section of the cap well, that is, the section of the cap well which encloses the explosive end section of the detonator. Leaving the explosive end section unshielded facilitâtes planned initiation by the detonator of the cast booster explosive surrounding the cap well.

The protective sleeve may be made of any suitable material such as métal or plastic 30 or a closed cell synthetic polymeric foam, or a combination thereof.

[0010] Specifically, in accordance with the présent invention there is provided a canister assembly for a cast booster explosive, the canister assembly comprising: a canister body defining a canister interior, and having a canister base, a cap well of generally tubular configuration disposée! within the canister interior, the cap well having a length, an outside diameter, an active section terminating in a distal closed end, and a proximal open end, the cap well being configured to receive therewithin a detonator comprising a shell having an explosive end section and a firing train sec5 tion, such detonator to be disposed within the cap well with at least a portion of such explosive end section disposed in the active section of the cap well. A protective sleeve surmounts the cap well and encloses a major portion of the length of the cap well, the protective sleeve being configured to leave exposed the active section of the cap well.

[0011] One aspect of the présent invention provides that the active section of the cap well is dimensioned to contain the entire explosive end section of such detonator.

[0012] Another aspect of the présent invention provides that the protective sleeve has an inside diameter which is greater than the outside diameter of the cap 15 well, which results in an annular cap well space between the inside diameter of the protective sleeve and the outside diameter of the cap well.

[0013] Other aspects of the présent invention provide one or more of the following features, alone or in any suitable combination: the protective sleeve has a terminal end which terminâtes adjacent the active section of the cap well, and the 20 canister assembly further comprises a sleeve seal closing the annular cap well space at the terminal end of the protective sleeve; the protective sleeve has a base end opposite the terminal end and the base end of the protective sleeve is mounted on the canister base in order to seal the annular cap well space at the base end of the protective sleeve; and the annular cap well space has a thickness of from about

0.05 inch (0.127 cm) to about 0.08 inch (0.203 cm).

[0014] Still other aspects of the présent invention provide that the protective sleeve comprises a tube, e.g., a métal tube, the tube having one or more of the following characteristics: a wall thickness of from about 0.05 inch (0.127 centimeter) to about 0.07 inch (0.178 centimeter); a length of from about 2 inches (5.08 centime30 fers) to about 3 inches (7.62 centimeters); and an outer diameter of from about 0.7 inch (1.78 centimeters) to about 1 inch (2.54 centimeters).

[0015] Other aspects ofthe présent invention provide for a canister assembly further comprising one or both of a cast booster explosive disposed within the canister interior and a fused detonator disposed within the cap well.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view in élévation of one embodiment ofthe présent invention showing, with parts broken away, a booster explosive comprising a detonator enclosed within a cap well which itself is enclosed for a substantial portion of its length within a shock-absorbing barrier provided by a protective sleeve;

[0017] Figure 1A is a partial view, enlarged relative to Figure 1, showing the upper portion of the sleeve seal of Figure 1 ;

[0018] Figure 1B is a view ofthe detonator shown in Figure 1;

[0019] Figure 2 is a perspective view of the sleeve seal best seen in Figure 1A;

[0020] Figure 3 is a view with parts broken away or omitted for clarity of illustration, showing the interior of a central cap well embodiment of the présent invention; and

[0021] Figure 4 is a graph showing the shock wave résistance demonstrated by two different embodiments ofthe présent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION AND SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS THEREOF

[0022] Referring now to Figures 1 and 1A, there is shown an embodiment of the présent invention wherein a canister assembly (un-numbered) comprises part of a booster explosive 10. The canister assembly comprises a canister body 12 having a canister base 14 in which an open base passage 14a and a cap well mounting fixture 14b are formed. A cap well 20 is mounted on cap well mounting fixture 14b and is surmounted by a protective sleeve 28 along a portion of its length.

[0023] Contained within the body 12 ofthe canister assembly is a cast explosive 16, which, as is well known in the art, may be Pentolite or the like. Cast explosive 16 has formed therein a cavity (un-numbered) which is configured to receive cap well 20 and the protective sleeve 28, as more fully described below. Cast explo- sive 16 has also formed therein a fuse tunnel 22. A detonator 24 has connected to it a fuse 18, which may be shock tube or any other suitable fuse extending from the fuse end (unnumbered) of detonator 24 through base passage 14a, thence through fuse tunnel 22 and outwardly of fuse tunnel 22 at the top 16a of cast explosive 16, in the usual manner. Cap well 20 has a distal closed end 20a and a proximal open end 20b, the latter of which is securely mounted onto cap well mounting fixture 14b. The cap well itself may comprise a synthetic polymeric materîal (plastic) closed at one end and open at its opposite end to receive the detonator therein, as shown in the canister described in the above-mentioned U.S. Patent 9,115,963. However, any suitable canister and cap well configuration is useable in the présent invention. The canister body 12 and canister base 14 and, if présent, an optional canister top (not shown) may be made of molded plastic or any suitable materîal such as waxed or coated cardboard, plastic sheeting, or the like. Detonator 24 is disposed within cap well 20 with the explosive end section 24a of detonator 24 (Figure 1 B) at or adjacent to the closed end 20a of cap well 20. As seen in Figure 1 B, detonator 24 is of conventional construction and is comprised of a shell 24b having the usual crimp 24c closing the open end of shell 24b, and a detonator tip 24d. Detonator 24 further has a firing train section 24e which contains, as is well known in the art, an electronic or pyrotechnie firing train. Firing train section 24e is the portion of the detonator 24 pro- tected by protective sleeve 28.

[0024] Detonator 24, which may be of conventional construction, is positioned within cap well 20 with detonator explosive charge 26 positioned at or immediately adjacent to the distal closed end 20a of cap well 20. A small air head space (not shown) may optionally be left between the tip 24d of detonator 20 and the distal closed end 20a of cap well 20.

[0025] Those skilled in the art will understand that the canister assembly and cast booster explosive of the présent invention may be made by any suitable manufacturing process. An efficient process is to mold from a suitable synthetic polymeric materîal canister body 12 integrally with fuse tunnel 22 and to separately mold cap 30 well 20 from the same or a different synthetic polymeric materîal, as disclosed in the above-mentioned U.S. Patent 9,115,963. Cap well 20, protective sleeve 28 and sleeve seal 34 are then mounted within canister body 12. Thereafter, a flowable explosive is introduced into canister body 12 and hardens into cast explosive 16. Nor20960 mally, the detonator 24 and its fuse 18 are not inserted until the point of use, for obvious safety reasons.

[0026] In Figures 1 and 1A, the shell 24b of detonator 24 is broken away at the explosive end section 24a thereof in order to show detonator explosive charge

26. A shock-absorbing barrier is comprised, in the illustrated embodiment, of a pro- tective sleeve 28, which extends from the proximal open end 20b of cap well 20 and stops short of the portion of cap well 20 which encloses explosive end section 24a of detonator 24. Thus, the terminal end 28a (Figure 1A) of protective sleeve 28 stops short of detonator explosive charge 26 contained within explosive end section 24a.

As seen in Figure 1, protective sleeve 28 extends to the proximal open end 20b of cap well 20.

[0027] An annular air space is provided between the outside diameter of the cap well and the inside diameter of the protective sleeve. Although the protective sleeve snugly fitted about the exterior of the cap well may serve as the sole shock 15 absorbing barrier, improved shock résistance is attained by a combination of a protective sleeve and an annular air space between the exterior of the cap well and the interior of the protective sleeve. As seen in Figure 1A, the inside diameter D of protective sleeve 28 is greater than the outside diameter d of cap well 20 so that the width w of the annular air space is (D-d)/2. As is conventional practice, cap well 20 20 is tapered along its length to be of slightly smaller diameter at distal closed end 20a (Figure 1) than at proximal open end 20b. The tapered inside diameter facilitâtes insertion of detonator 24 into cap well 20 from open end 20b of cap well 20. The identically tapered outside diameter d (Figure 1 A) of cap well 20 results in the width w of the annular air space 32 gradually increasing in size from adjacent open end

20b to adjacent closed end 20a. The size range of width w may of course differ from one to another embodiment of the invention. In some embodiments, width w ranges from about 0.05 inch (0.127 cm) to about 0.08 inch (0.203 cm), or from about 0.05 inch (0.127 cm) to about 0.075 inch (0.191 cm), or from about 0.052 inch (0.132 cm) to about 0.072 inch (0.183 cm). Water, soil and other foreign materials, as well as the bulk explosive slurry or émulsion, or cast explosive pentolite or the like, must be kept out of the annular air space if the air space is to provide effective shock wave atténuation. The annular air space is therefore sealed at both ends of the protective sleeve as described below. These expédients serve to reduce the transmission of shock waves from prior adjacent explosions to a detonator within the cap well, thereby reducing the chance of damage to an adjacent, e.g., downstream detonator, and subséquent borehole failure. Downstream and upstream are relative terms used in the sense that the sequence of explosions travels from upstream to downstream.

Thus, an upstream booster explosive is intended to be detonated before a downstream booster explosive.

[0028] The annular air space surrounding the cap well containing the detonator enhances the shock wave protection as compared to the protective sleeve snugly fitted around the cap well. Either arrangement, a snugly-fitted protective sleeve or a 10 protective sleeve which provides an annular air space, is a much poorer transmission medium for explosive shock waves than would be a solid cast explosive such as Pentolite disposed in direct contact with the cap well.

[0029] The annular air space 32 should be protected against infiltration by ground water, soil particles, particles of ammonium nitrate from the ANFO, etc., βει 5 pecially if the cast booster explosive is positioned within a borehole for a significant length of time before détonation. Such infiltration will greatly reduce or eliminate the shock-absorbing ability of the annular air space. In order to prevent such infiltration into the annular air space 32, which is formed between the outer wall 20c (Figure 1 A) of cap well 20 and the inner wall 28c of protective sleeve 28, the terminal end 28a of protective sleeve 28 is closed by a sleeve seal 34. Sleeve seal 34 is of generally annular configuration and may be formed of any material suitable for sealing against liquid or particulate infiltration, for example, sleeve seal 34 may be made of a suitable rubber or other natural or synthetic polymeric material. As seen in Figures 1A and 2, sleeve seal 34 comprises a tubular body 34a from which an annular crown

34b extends longitudinally, and a ring 34c extends radially of tubular body 34a and rests on the terminal end 28a of protective sleeve 28. A portion of ring 34c at the right-hand side of Figure 1A is broken away to better show a portion of terminal end 28a of protective sleeve 28. Sleeve seal 34 is sufficiently compressible to form a tight force-fit seal to close the terminal end 28a of protective sleeve 28 to prevent in30 filtration of ground water, etc., into annular air space 32. Generally, sleeve seal 34 may comprise any suitable elastomeric material such as a water-resistant rubber such as that sold under the trademark NEOPRENE®. As seen in Figure 1, the bottom of protective sleeve 28 is sealed by being firmly seated on canister base 14.

[0030] In another embodiment ofthe présent invention, the protective sleeve may be a close fit about the outside wall of cap well 20 so as to substantially eliminate the annular air space 32. This embodiment is obtained by a force-fit of protective sleeve 28 about most of the exterior wall of cap well 20 stopping short of at least 5 the portion of cap well 20 which encloses the explosive end section 24a of detonator 24. In this embodiment the protective sleeve alone is relied upon to provide atténuation of shock waves from prior adjacent explosions.

[0031] As noted above, protective sleeve 28 may be made of any suitable material, for example, any suitable métal such as brass or any suitable synthetic poly- mer (plastic) material, or wood, cardboard, etc., or combinations thereof. Protective sleeve 28, when made of brass, may be a seamless tube having a wall thickness of at least about 0.05 inch (0.127 centimeter), for example, from about 0.05 inch to about 0.06 inch (0.152 centimeter) or from about 0,05 inch to about 0.070 inch (0.178 centimeter). The length of protective sleeve 28 and the other exemplary di15 mensions given herein may of course vary depending on the spécifie dimensions of the cap well, the degree of desired shock wave protection, etc. For example, the length of protective sleeve 28 may vary from about 2 inches (5.08 centimeters) to about 3 inches (7.62 centimeters) in length, and the outer diameter of protective sleeve 28 may be from about 0.7 inch (1.78 centimeters) to about 1 inch (2.54 cen- timeters). While a tube as described above is simple to manufacture, obviously the protective sleeve, whether dimensioned to be a snug, close fit around the cap well or dimensioned to provide an annular air gap, may be of more complex design, e.g., it may comprise a multi-layer tube with layers of different materials, a coated tube, etc.

[0032] In other embodiments ofthe présent invention, which may be referred 25 to as “central cap well” embodiments, the cap well may be positioned to extend along the central longitudinal axis ofthe canister so that the cap well and the detonator contained therein are équidistant from the canister wall in ail directions. This results in the same degree of protection from shock waves by the surrounding body of cast explosive regardless ofthe orientation ofthe booster explosive to the source of 30 the shock wave, i.e., to the location of a nearby explosive which is to be detonated before the booster charge ofthe invention.

[0033] Figure 3 shows a central cap well booster explosive 10' with a cardboard canister body 12' broken away and cast booster explosive and detonator omit ted for clarity of illustration. Cap well 20' is seen to be disposed along the central longitudinal axis of booster explosive 10' and the fuse tunnel (not shown in Figure 3) will of necessity be offset from the central longitudinal axis. A protective sleeve 28' extends from the bottom of the cap well 20' and stops short of the closed end 20a' of 5 cap well 20' in order to leave unshielded by sleeve 28' the active section 20d' of cap well 20, that is, the portion of cap well 20' which houses the explosive end section of the detonator (not shown in Figure 3). This facilitâtes initiation ofthe cast booster (not shown in Figure 3) surrounding and enclosing cap well 20' and protective sleeve 28'. Sleeve seal 34' seals the top ofthe protective sleeve 28' to prevent entry of for10 eign objects into the annular air space formed between the exterior of cap well 20' and protective sleeve 28'.

[0034] A sériés of tests was conducted by suspending prototype test embodiments of booster explosives ofthe présent invention in water spaced apart at different selected distances from a donor explosive charge. The donor explosive charges 15 were suspended in the water at the same depth as the test embodiments, at about 6 feet (1.83 meters) below the surface. The donor charges comprised two 900 gram Pentolite charges, to provide a donor charge of 1,800 grams of Pentolite. Each of the test embodiments was configured so that the distance between the cap well (20, Figure 1 ) and the wall of the canister body (12, Figure 1 ) varied from 0.5 inch (1.27 20 centimeters) to 1.2 inches (3.05 centimeters). The test embodiments were not oriented rotationally to the donor charges during the tests. Consequently, the amount of cast explosive between the cap well and the wall of the canister body which directly faced the oncoming shock wave randomly varied between 0.5 and 1.2 inches (1.27 to 3.05 centimeters). Both the donor charges and the test embodiments uti25 lized electronic delay detonators. The tests were conducted by initiating both the donor and test embodiment detonators at the same time, with the donor charge delay detonator programmed to detonate while the test embodiment delay detonator was still counting down towards its détonation time. Those of the test embodiment detonators which were significantly damaged by the shock wave generated by the donor charge failed to initiate their associated explosive charges. The test results are graphically shown in Figure 4, which shows on the left-hand vertical axis the percentage of test embodiments which were not damaged by the shock wave engendered by détonation of the donor charges. (A single donor charge was used for a single test embodiment in each test.) The graph thus shows the percentage of test embodiment booster explosives which functioned properly, that is, which were not damaged by the donor explosive shock wave. The horizontal axis of the chart shows the distance in feet between the test embodiments and the donor charges. The indicated distances are center to center distances between the donor charge and the test embodiment.

[0035] The test embodiments identified as SR in the graph of Figure 4 are embodiments as described herein where there is no annular air space, i.e., the protective sleeve 28 fits snugly about the exterior of the cap well 20. The test embodiments identified in the graph of Figure 4 as SR2 are in accordance with the illustrated embodiments ofthe present invention wherein the annular air space 32 (Figure 1A) is about 0.05 inch (0.13 centimeter) wide. That is, there is about 0.05 inch (0.13 centimeter) distance between the exterior wall of cap well 20 and the interior wall of protective sleeve 28. The protective sleeve 28 used in ail test embodiments was a brass sleeve 0.73 inch (1.85 centimeters) in outer diameter with a wall thickness of 0.065 inch (0.165 centimeter). The brass sleeve was 2.7 inches (6.9 centimeters) in length, leaving the portion ofthe cap well which enclosed the explosive end section 24a of detonator 24 exposed, i.e., uncovered by protective sleeve 28.

[0036] Each test embodiment utilized an electronic delay detonator sold under the trademark DigiShot® by Dyno Nobel Inc., and programmed for a 1,500 millisecond delay. The delay detonator was 3.5 inches (8.9 centimeters) in length and had an explosive end about 1 inch (2.54 centimeters) in length which contained about 0.1 gram of lead azide initiator enclosed by a base charge comprised of about 0.8 gram of PETN.

[0037] Each test embodiment comprised a booster explosive containing 450 grams of Pentolite in a plastic cylinder measuring about 5 inches (12.7 centimeters) in length and about 2 inches (5.1 centimeters) in diameter.

[0038] The results plotted in the graph of Figure 4 may be tabulated as follows.

Table

Distance In Feet From

Percentage of Test Embodiments That Were Not Damaged By Donor Explosive Shock

Donor Charge (meters)	Wave
SR	SR2
2.50 (0.762)	47%	69%
2.75 (0.808)	68%	93%
3.00 (0.914)	72%	95%
3.25 (0.991)	89%	100%

[0039] It is seen that while the SR embodiment, having a brass protective sleeve snugly fitted about the cap well, provides protection against shock wave damage, the degree of protection is significantly enhanced by the provision of an an5 nular air space in the SR2 embodiment, using a protective sleeve which was identical to that used in the SR embodiments.

[0040] While the invention has been described in detail with reference to spécifie embodiments, it will be appreciated that numerous variations may be made to the described embodiments, which variations nonetheless lie within the scope ofthe 10 présent invention.

Claims (15)

1. A canister assembly for a cast booster explosive, the canister assembly comprising:

a canister body defining a canister interior, and having a canister base, a cap well of generally tubular configuration disposed within the canister interior, the cap well having a length, an outside diameter, an active section terminating in a distal closed end, and a proximal open end, the cap well being configured to receive therewithin a detonator comprising a shell having an explosive end section and a firing train section, such detonator to be disposed within the cap well with at least a portion of such explosive end section disposed in the active section of the cap well; and a protective sleeve surmounting the cap well and enclosing a major portion ofthe length thereof, the protective sleeve being configured to leave exposed the active section ofthe cap well.

2. The canister assembly of claim 1 wherein the active section of the cap well is dimensioned to contain the entire explosive end section of such detonator.

3. The canister assembly of claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the protective sleeve has an inside diameter which is greater than the outside diameter of the cap well whereby to define an annular cap well space between the inside diameter of the protective sleeve and the outside diameter ofthe cap well.

4. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve has a terminal end which terminâtes adjacentthe active section ofthe cap well, the canister assembly further comprising a sleeve seal closing the annular cap well space at the terminal end ofthe protective sleeve.

5. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve has a base end opposite the terminal end and wherein the base end of the protective sleeve is mounted on the canister base whereby to seal the annular cap well space at the base end of the protective sleeve.

6. The cannister assembly of claim 3 wherein the annular cap well space has a thickness of from about 0.05 inch (0.127 cm) to about 0.08 inch (0.203 cm).

7. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve comprises a tube having a wall thickness of from about 0.05 inch (0.127 centimeter) to about 0.07 inch (0.178 centimeter).

8. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve has a length of from about 2 inches (5.08 centimeters) to about 3 inches (7.62 centimeters).

9. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve has an outer diameter of from about 0.7 inch (1.78 centimeters) to about 1 inch (2.54 centimeters).

10. The canister assembly of claim 3 wherein the protective sleeve comprises a métal tube.

11. A canister assembly for a cast booster explosive, the canister assembly comprising:

a canister body defining a canister interior, and having a canister base, a cap well of generally tubular configuration disposed within the canister interior, the cap well having a length, an outside diameter, an active section terminating in a distal closed end, and a proximal open end, the cap well being configured to receive therewithin a detonator comprising a shell having an explosive end section and a firing train section, such detonator to be disposed within the cap well with at least a portion of such explosive end section disposed in the active section of the cap well;

a protective sleeve surmounting the cap well and enclosing a major portion of the length of the cap well, but leaving the active section of the cap well ex20960

posed, the protective sleeve having a base end and an opposite terminal end, the terminal end terminating adjacent the active section of the cap well;

the canister assembly further comprising a sleeve seal mounted on the terminal end of the protective sleeve to seal the annular cap well space at the terminal end of the protective sleeve, and the base end of the protective sleeve is mounted on the canister base to seal the annular cap well space at the base end of the protective sleeve; and the protective sleeve further having an inside dîameter which is greater than the outside dîameter of the cap well whereby to define an annular cap well space between the inside dîameter of the protective sleeve and the outside dîameter of the cap well.

12. The canister assembly of claim 1, claim 2 or claim 11 further comprising a cast booster explosive disposed within the canister interior.

13. The canister assembly of claim 12 further comprising a detonator disposed within the cap well.

14. The canister assembly of claim 3 further comprising a cast booster explosive disposed within the canister interior.

15. The canister assembly of claim 14 further comprising a detonator disposed within the cap well.