Thermodynamics and performance of Al/CuO nanothermite with different storage time

The storage stability of energetic materials is important for its application. Here, the storage stability of Al/CuO nanothermite, which was prepared by electrospray method and stored with different storage time, was systematically researched. The activation energy of Al/CuO nanothermite was calculated by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The ignition temperature and the curve pressure history of Al/CuO nanothermite was measured using ignition temperature measuring device and constant-volume pressurization tests, respectively. Further, the thermites were characterized by X-ray Diffractometer (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The results show that the morphology of the thermites did not change significantly. The activation energy was decreased from 254.1 kJ/mol to 181.8 kJ/mol after storage for 13 months. When stored for 0, 7 and 13 months, the peak pressures of Al/CuO nanothermite were 685.8 kPa, 626.3 kPa and 625.5 kPa, respectively. In addition to the ignition temperature, it was 775 ℃, 739 ℃ and 754 ℃, respectively. This result indicated that the ignition and combustion properties of Al/CuO nano-thermite are obviously reduced when stored for a long time, at room temperature.     

Combustion characteristic and aging behavior of bimetal thermite powders

Nanothermites have been employed as fuel additives in energetic formulations due to their higher en-ergy density over CHNO energetics. Nevertheless, sintering and degradation of nanoparticles signifi-cantly limit the practical use of nanothermites. In this work, combustion characteristic and aging behavior of aluminum/iron oxide (Al/Fe2O3) nanothermite mixtures were investigated in the presence of micron-scale nickel aimed to produce bimetal thermite powders. The results showed that the alumina content in the combustion residue increased from 88.3％ for Al/Fe2O3 nanothermite to 96.5％ for the nanothermite mixture containing 20 wt％nickel. Finer particle sizes of combustion residue were obtained for the nanothermite mixtures containing nickel, indicative of the reduced agglomeration. Both results suggested a more complete combustion in the bimetal thermite powders. Aging behavior of the nano-thermite mixture was also assessed by measuring the heat of combustion of the mixture before and after aging process. The reduction in heat of combustion of nanothermite mixtures containing nickel was less severe as compared to a significant decrease for the nanothermite mixture without nickel, indicating better aging resistance of the bimetal thermite powders.     

Nanothermite colloids: A new prospective for enhanced performance

Nanothermites (metal oxide/metal) can offer tremendously exothermic self sustained reactions. CuO is one of the most effective oxidizers for naonothermite applications. This study reports on two prospectives for the manufacture of CuO nanoparticles. Colloidal CuO particles of 15 nm particle size were developed using hydrothermal synthesis technique. Multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) with surface are 700 m²/g was employed as a substrate for synthesis of CuO-coated MWCNTs using electroless plating. On the other hand, aluminium particles with combustion heat of 32000 J/g is of interest as high energy density material. The impact of stoichiometric nanothermite particles (CuO/Al & Cuo-coated MWCNTs/Al) on shock wave strength of Al/TNT nanocomposite was evaluated using ballistic mortar test. While CuO-coated MWCNTs decreased the shock wave strength by 15%; colloidal CuO enhanced the shock wave strength by 30%. The superior performance of colloidal CuO particles was correlated to their steric stabilization with employed organic solvent. This is the first time ever to report on fabrication, isolation, and integration of stablilized colloidal nanothermite particles into energetic matrix where intimate mixing between oxidizer and metal fuel could be achieved.     

Liquid phase in-situ synthesis of LiF coated boron powder composite and performance study

Among practical metal additives, boron (B) has a high volumetric heating value, making it a promising choice as a fuel additive. Although B can theoretically yield a large amount of energy upon complete combustion, its combustion is retarded by the initial presence of B oxide, which coats the surfaces of B particle. To improve the ignition and combustion properties of B powder, LiOH and NH₄F were used as precursors to synthesize uniformly LiF-coated B composites (LiF-B) in situ. The LiF-B mixture was also prepared for comparison using a physical method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were used to characterize the morphologies and compositions of the products. The thermal and combustion properties of the samples were characterized by thermal gravity-differential thermal gravity (TG-DTG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and closed bomb experiment. The XRD, FTIR, SEM and EDS results demonstrated the successful preparation of the coated LiF-B sample. The TG-DTG and closed bomb experiment results indicated that the addition of LiF decreased the ignition temperature of B powder, and increasing its reaction efficiency. DSC results show that when LiF-B was added, the released heat of underwater explosive increased by 6727.2, 7280.4 and 3109.6 J/g at heating rates of 5, 10, and 15 °C/min, respectively. Moreover, LiF-B decreased the activation energy of secondary combustion reaction of explosive system as calculated through Kissinger's method by 28.9%, which indicated an excellent catalytic effect for the thermal decomposition of underwater explosive. The results reveal that LiF can improve the combustion efficiency of B powder, thereby increasing the total energy of explosives. The mechanical sensitivity increased slightly after adding LiF-B to the underwater explosive. Compared to the underwater explosive with added B, the mechanical sensitivity of the explosive with added LiF-B was significantly lower.     

Research on a MEMS pyrotechnic with a double-layer barrier safety and arming device

As an essential component of ammunition, pyrotechnics can control ignition with high reliability. However, due to limits of fabrication technology, traditional pyrotechnics are bulky. To achieve both functionality and miniaturization, MEMS pyrotechnics integrate initiator, safety-and-arming (S&A) device and lead charge and keep all components within a small size. MEMS S&A devices, as the core component to ensure system safety, are difficult to achieve active and rapid response to control signals with high safety and reliability. In order to overcome the difficulty, we propose the design and characterization of a MEMS pyrotechnic with a double-layer barrier S&A device. The MEMS pyrotechnic is a high-integrated device with an overall size of 13.4 × 8.5 × 5.2 mm³. The initiator is a NiCr bridge foil covered with an Al/CuO energetic film, which can generate flame when ignited by an excitation voltage. To match the flame energy, lead styphnate is chosen in this study as the lead charge. The S&A device contains four semi-circular barriers, which are directly driven by V-shape electro-thermal actuators to gain active control of the pyrotechnics' ignition condition with rapid response. To improve the system's reliability, the four barriers are axisymmetrically placed in two layers, two barriers for each layer, to constitute a double-layer structure with a thickness of 100 μm. The ignition test results show that the S&A device can prevent the initiator from detonating the lead charge in safety condition. In arming condition, the lead charge will be detonated.     

煤油超音速燃烧的试验研究

在地面直连式试车台上,研究了煤油碳氢燃料超燃冲压发动机的点火燃烧性能。通过测量模型发动机壁面压力分布,比较了不同工况下的煤油点火燃烧性能。试验结果表明,在当量比为0.27～1.46的大范围内,煤油在超燃冲压模型发动机中能够成功点火,支板和凹腔对煤油在超声速气流中的点火及稳定燃烧有重要作用,少量氢气的喷入对煤油的点火燃烧有良好的促进作用。太厚的支板、过高的当量比、模型发动机第一级燃烧室加入燃料过多会使发动机壅塞,影响隔离段的正常工作,进而影响加热器喷管工作。     

Construction and Properties of Structure-and Size-controlled Micro/Nano-energetic Materials

The recent research progress of structure- and size-controlled micro/nano-energetic materials is reviewed, which properties are fundamentally different from those of their corresponding bulk materials. The development of the construction strategies for achieving zero-dimensional (0D), one-dimensional (1D), two-dimensional (2D), and three-dimensional (3D) micro/nanostructures from energetic molecules is introduced. Also, an overview of the unique properties induced by micro/nanostructures and size effects is provided. Special emphasis is focused on the size-dependent properties that are different from those of the conventional micro-sized energetic materials, such as thermal decomposition, sensitivity, combustion and detonation, and compaction behaviors. A conclusion and our view of the future development of micro/nano-energetic materials and devices are given.     

固冲补燃室团聚硼颗粒燃烧试验

研究团聚硼颗粒在补燃室中的点火燃烧对提高固冲发动机性能具有重要意义。通过试验模拟固冲发动机工作过程的方法,开展了补燃室流场条件下的团聚硼颗粒点火燃烧试验。结合高速火焰图像处理技术和流场参数测量结果,对试验中团聚硼颗粒的点火燃烧状态、火焰结构以及颗粒尺寸变化等进行了分析,获得了补燃室燃气温度和氧气含量等因素对团聚硼颗粒点火燃烧过程的影响机制。对燃烧残渣进行了分析,发现燃烧前后颗粒尺寸变化不大,燃烧过程中高温气流可能进入了颗粒内部并与硼颗粒发生反应。     

The surface activation of boron to improve ignition and combustion characteristic

Boron is a very promising and highly attractive fuel because of high calorific value. However, the practical applications in explosives and propellants of boron have been limited by long ignition delay time and low combustion efficiency. Herein, nano-Al and graphene fluoride (GF) as surface activated materials are employed to coat boron (B) particles to improve ignition and combustion performance. The reaction heat of nano-Al coated B/KNO₃ and GF coated B/KNO₃ are 1116.83 J/g and 862.69 J/g, respectively, which are higher than that of pure B/KNO₃ (823.39 J/g). The ignition delay time of B/KNO₃ could be reduced through nano-Al coating. The shortest ignition delay time is only 75 ms for B coated with nano-Al of 8 wt%, which is much shorter than that of pure B/KNO₃ (109 ms). However, the ignition delay time of B/KNO₃ coated with GF has been increased from 109 to 187 ms. B coated with GF and nano-Al shown significantly influence on the pressure output and flame structure of B/KNO₃. Furthermore, the effects of B/O ratios on the pressure output and ignition delay time have been further fully studied. For B/KNO₃ coated with nano-Al and GF, the highest pressures are 88 KPa and 59 KPa for B/O ratio of 4:6, and the minimum ignition delay time are 94 ms and 148 ms for B/O ratio of 7:3. Based on the above results, the reaction process of boron coated with GF and nano-Al has been proposed to understand combustion mechanism.     

Controllable combustion behaviors of the laser-controlled solid propellant

Microsatellites have been widely applied in the fields of communication,remote sensing,navigation and science exploration due to its characteristics of low cost,flexible launch mode and short development period.However,conventional solid-propellant have difficulties in starting and interrupting combustion because combustion is autonomously sustained after ignition.Herein,we proposed a new type of solid-propellant named laser-controlled solid propellant,which is sensitive to laser irradiation and can be started or interrupted by switching on/off the continuous wave laser.To demonstrate the feasibility and investigate the controllable combustion behaviors under different laser on/off conditions,the combus-tion parameters including burning rate,ignition delay time and platform pressure were tested using pressure sensor,high-speed camera and thermographic camera.The results showed that the increase of laser-on or laser-off duration both will lead to the decrease of propellant combustion performance during re-ignition and re-combustion process.This is mainly attributed to the laser attenuation caused by the accumulation of combustion residue and the change of chamber ambient temperature.Simultaneously,the multiple ignition tests revealed that the increased chamber ambient temperature after combustion can make up for the energy loss of laser attenuation and expansion of chamber cavity.However,the laser-controlled combustion performance of solid propellant displayed a decrease trend with the addi-tion of ignition times.Nevertheless,the results still exhibited good laser-controlled agility of laser-controlled solid propellant and manifested its inspiring potential in many aspects of space missions.     

Reaction characteristic of PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb composites and application in shaped charge liner

In this paper, the reaction characteristic and its application in shaped charge warhead of a novel reactive material, which introduced copper (Cu) and plumbum (Pb) into traditional polytetrafluoroethylene/aluminum (PTFE/Al), are studied. The thermal analysis and chemical reaction behavior of the PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb mixture are investigated by Differential Scanning Calorimetry (DSC),Thermo-gravimetry (TG), and X-ray Diffraction (XRD) techniques. Then, the shaped charge liners with PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb reactive materials are fabricated, and the X-ray experiments show that they could form reactive jets with excellent performance under the detonation effects of the shaped charge. Based on that, the penetration experiments of shaped charge with PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb reactive liner against steel plates are carried out, and the results demonstrate that the PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb reactive jets could produce a deeper penetration depth compared to the traditional PTFE/Al reactive jets. Meanwhile, the PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb reactive jets also show significant inner-blast effects, leading to dramatically cracking or fragmentation behavior of the penetrated steel plates. This new PTFE/Al/Cu/Pb reactive liner shaped charge presents enhanced penetration behavior for steel targets that incorporates the penetration capability of a high-density and ductility jet, and the chemical energy release of PTFE-matrix reactive materials.     

N2O/C7H8单喷嘴燃气发生器试验研究

以基于N2O/C7H8的燃烧驱动混合型气动CO2激光器点火试验为研究背景,设计了液态N2O供应系统及N2O/C7H8单喷嘴燃气发生器.对液态N2O供应系统、N2O/C7H8的点火及燃烧性能进行了研究.试验结果表明:设计的N2O供应系统能够实现液态N2O的稳定供应;在设定的时序下,两个设计工况(余氧系数分别为0.3和0....     

Formulation development and characterization of cellulose acetate nitrate based propellants for improved insensitive munitions properties

Cellulose acetate nitrate (CAN) was used as an insensitive energetic binder to improve the insensitive munitions (IM) properties of gun propellants to replace the M1 propellant used in 105 mm artillery charges. CAN contains the energetic nitro groups found in nitrocellulose (NC), but also acetyl functionalities, which lowered the polymer's sensitivity to heat and shock, and therefore improved its IM properties relative to NC. The formulation, development and small-scale characterization testing of several CAN-based propellants were done. The formulations, using insensitive energetic solid fillers and high-nitrogen modifiers in place of nitramine were completed. The small scale characterization testing, such as closed bomb testing, small scale sensitivity, thermal stability, and chemical compatibility were done. The mechanical response of the propellants under high-rate uni-axial compression at, hot, cold, and ambient temperatures were also completed. Critical diameter testing, hot fragment conductive ignition (HFCI) tests were done to evaluate the propellants' responses to thermal and shock stimuli. Utilizing the propellant chemical composition, theoretical predictions of erosivity were completed. All the small scale test results were utilized to down-select the promising CAN based formulations for large scale demonstration testing such as the ballistic performance and fragment impact testing in the 105 mm M67 artillery charge configurations. The test results completed in the small and large scale testing are discussed.     

Hazard evaluation of ignition sensitivity and explosion severity for three typical MH2 (M＝Mg,Ti, Zr) of energetic materials

MgH2, TiH2, and ZrH2 are three typical metal hydrides that have been gradually applied to composite explosives and propellants as additives in recent years. To evaluate ignition sensitivity and explosion severity, the Hartmann device and spherical pressure vessel were used to test ignition energy and ex-plosion pressure, respectively. The results showed that the ignition sensitivity of ZrH2, TiH2 and MgH2 gradually increased. When the concentration of MgH2 is 83.0 g/m3 in Hartmann device, the ignition energy attained a minimum of 10.0 mJ. The explosion pressure of MgH2 were 1.44 times and 1.76 times that of TiH2 and ZrH2, respectively, and the explosion pressure rising rate were 3.97 times and 9.96 times that of TiH2 and ZrH2, respectively, through the spherical pressure vessel. It indicated that the reaction reactivity and reaction rate of MgH2 were higher than that of TiH2 and ZrH2. In addition, to conduct in-depth theoretical analysis of ignition sensitivity and explosion severity, gas production and combus-tion heat per unit mass of ZrH2, TiH2 and MgH2 were tested by mercury manometer and oxygen bomb calorimetry. The experimental results revealed that MgH2 had a relatively high gas production per unit mass (5.15 mL/g), while TiH2 and ZrH2 both had a gas production of less than 2.0 mL/g. Their thermal stability gradually increased, leading to a gradual increase in ignition energy. Furthermore, compared with theoretical combustion heat, the combustion ratio of MgH2, TiH2 and ZrH2 was more than 96.0%, with combustion heat value of 29.96, 20.94 and 12.22 MJ/kg, respectively, which was consistent with the explosion pressure and explosion severity test results.     

空气/煤油/水燃气发生器点火特性试验

燃气发生器是超燃冲压发动机地面试验系统中的关键设备,为提高系统安全性和经济性设计了空气/煤油/水燃气发生器,在富燃状态下进行了一系列点火试验,试验结果表明:该型燃气发生器,实现可靠点火的余氧系数下限为0.51;水的加入使得化学反应速率和火焰传播速度降低,燃气发生器点火和火焰稳定困难,提高余氧系数可以提高点火可靠性。同时,水的加入容易引起燃烧不稳定,通过提高余氧系数来消除低频不稳定燃烧。     

点火具参数对RLPG点火过程的影响

采用考虑固体点火药燃烧过程的再生式液体发射药火炮(RLPG)膛内再生喷射燃烧过程的零维数学模型,研究了点火具参数对RLPGG点火过程的影响,分析并揭示了点火具参数对点火性能的影响规律.     

西藏与内地古建筑常用木材燃烧特性对比研究

为研究西藏高海拔条件对古建筑火灾的影响,分别在拉萨与廊坊进行了中等规模木垛燃烧实验。测得了木垛燃烧的质量损失速率、火焰高度和燃烧温度,并分析了空气中氧气含量和大气压力对木垛引燃和燃烧的影响。实验表明：在拉萨低气压条件下,木垛引燃难度加大、燃烧时间增加、质量损失速率降低、木垛中心温度降低。     

空气/煤油/水燃气发生器点火特性试验研究

燃气发生器是超燃冲压发动机地面试验系统中的关键设备,为提高系统安全性和经济性设计了空气/煤油/水燃气发生器,在富燃状态下进行了一系列点火试验,试验结果表明：该型燃气发生器,实现可靠点火的余氧系数下限为0.51;水的加入使得化学反应速率和火焰传播速度降低,燃气发生器点火和火焰稳定困难,提高余氧系数可以提高点火可靠性。同时水的加入容易引起燃烧不稳定,通过提高余氧系数可消除低频不稳定燃烧。     

Research on 2D Model of Capillary Discharge Plasma

The physical process of capillary discharge in a PE tube utilized in electro-thermal-chemical(ETC)guns was investigated.ETC guns can enhance the ignition and combustion of propellant in order to reduce the ignition delay and increase muzzle velocity of the projectile.A key component in ETC gun is the capillary plasma source.In this paper,a 2D steady state model of discharge was built by using magnetic hydrodynamics method.It took the plasma energy balance,material ablation,mass and momentum conservations in a quasi-neutral plasma region into account.Also,the effect of different compositions and PE concentration distribution were considered.In order to evaluate the validation of this model,the simulation results are compared with former works.     

利用镁金属化学还原法制备多孔Si/Si-O-C负极材料机理研究

以二乙烯基苯和聚硅氧烷为原料经先驱体转化法制备了Si-O-C材料，利用镁金属在惰性气氛保护下高温还原制备了多孔的Si/Si-O-C负极材料。Si/Si-O-C负极材料的首次放电与充电容量分别为547.2和450.7mAh?g-1，第二次放电与充电容量分别为487.4和422.9mAh?g-1，库伦效率分别为82.3%、86.8%，材料具有较好的循环性能。利用X射线衍射(XRD)、能谱分析(EDX)、元素分析和场发射扫描电镜(FE-SEM)分析了多孔Si/Si-O-C负极材料的组成、结构、形貌，从而研究利用镁金属化学还原法制备多孔Si/Si-O-C负极材料的机理。结果表明，镁金属在还原过程中生成MgO和Mg2SiO4等产物，经HCl洗涤后可形成多孔的Si/Si-O-C负极材料。Si/Si-O-C材料中的单质硅分布于多孔的Si-O-C相中，一定程度上可缓解Si在循环过程中产生的体积效应。利用镁金属还原Si-O-C材料制备多孔Si/Si-O-C材料是一种可行的制备方法。