Three batches of the commercial energetic material RDX, as received from various production locations and differing in sensitivity towards shock initiation, have been characterized with different microscopic techniques in order to visualize the defect content in these crystals. The RDX crystals are embedded in an epoxy matrix and cross-sectioned. By a treatment of grinding and polishing of the ...

Research efforts for realizing safer and higher performance energetic materials are continuing unabated all over the globe. While the thermites - pyrotechnic compositions of an oxide and a metal - have been finely tailored thanks to progress in other sectors, organic high explosives are still stagnating. The most symptomatic example is the longstanding challenge of the nanocrystallization of 1,...

Pyridine derivatives based on the addition of trinitromethyl functional groups were synthesized by the reaction of N₂O₄ with the corresponding pyridinecarboxaldoximes, then they were converted into dinitromethylide hydrazinium salts. These energetic compounds were fully characterized by IR and NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), and X-ray crystallograp...

high priority at military facilities where site management costs can be very high. A novel approach to control plume migration utilizes electrolytic permeable reactive barriers to degrade these chemical in situ. This research focuses on characterizing the relationship between electrode surface morphology and composition with the rate of electrochemical reduction for mixtures of cyclic nitramine...

Density functional theoretical method has been used to investigate the IR spectrum, heat of formation and thermal stability of a new energetic material, viz., 2,5,2'-triazido-1,1'-azo-1,3,4-triazole. The detonation velocity and pressure are evaluated using the Kamlet-Jacobs equations, based on the theoretical density and heat of formation. The bond dissociation energies for the weakest bonds ha...

Commercial explosives are complex mixtures that contain not only the active explosive agent(s) but also a host of other organic and inorganic compounds. The ultrahigh mass resolving power (m/delta m50% >200,000) and mass accuracy (<1 ppm) of electrospray ionization Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance (ESI FTICR) mass spectrometry allow for definitive identification of various species in T...

Low-order detonations and blow-in-place procedures on military training ranges can result in residual solid explosive formulations to serve as distributed point sources for ground water contamination. This study was conducted to determine if distribution coefficients from batch studies and transport parameters of pure compounds in solution adequately describe explosive transport where compounds...

During live fire training exercises, large amounts of explosives are consumed. Low order detonations of high explosive payloads result in the patchy dispersal of particles of high explosive formulations over large areas of firing range soils. Dissolution of explosives from explosive formulation particles into soil pore water is a controlling factor for transport, fate, and effects of explosive ...

The present study was aimed at providing data to be used at predicting exposure-based effects of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) aged in soil on endpoint organisms representing two trophic levels. These data can be used to define criteria or reference values for environmental management and conducting specific risk assessment. Long-term exposure tests were conducted to evaluate sublethal toxicity a...