Krümmel
Nobel established his first overseas company in Krümmel, Germany where he also discovered kieselguhr, a form of hardened algae as fine as powder, that turned liquid nitroglycerine into a safer explosive.

Nobel in Scotland
Alfred Nobel turned his sights to Scotland when Great Britain proved to be a difficult place to establish an explosives factory due to its restrictive laws and bureaucratic pitfalls in the 1800s.

Sevran
The idea of transforming highly sensitive explosives into new and less hazardous forms of gunpowder, contributed to Nobel's decision to buy the property in Sevran.