Trinitrotoluene is one of the most commonly used explosive
materials by military forces. One of the big reasons for this is
that it's very resistent to shocks and friction, which makes it
difficult to detonate. Because of this, TNT was originally
ignored as an explosive material and actually used as a yellow
dye! Eventually the Germans began using it in their artillery
shells. Here, the delayed detonation actually served to its
advantage. The German shells would explose inside British ships.
The British ones, on the other hand, exploded on contact,
wasting most of the explosive energy on the outside of the ship.