skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: The response of the HMX-based material PBXN-9 to thermal insults: thermal decomposition kinetics and morphological changes

Journal Article · · Thermochimica Acta
OSTI ID:1018798

PBXN-9, an HMX-formulation, is thermally damaged and thermally decomposed in order to determine the morphological changes and decomposition kinetics that occur in the material after mild to moderate heating. The material and its constituents were decomposed using standard thermal analysis techniques (DSC and TGA) and the decomposition kinetics are reported using different kinetic models. Pressed parts and prill were thermally damaged, i.e. heated to temperatures that resulted in material changes but did not result in significant decomposition or explosion, and analyzed. In general, the thermally damaged samples showed a significant increase in porosity and decrease in density and a small amount of weight loss. These PBXN-9 samples appear to sustain more thermal damage than similar HMX-Viton A formulations and the most likely reasons are the decomposition/evaporation of a volatile plasticizer and a polymorphic transition of the HMX from {beta} to {delta} phase.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
OSTI ID:
1018798
Report Number(s):
LLNL-JRNL-463953; THACAS; TRN: US201114%%339
Journal Information:
Thermochimica Acta, Vol. 515; ISSN 0040-6031
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

Similar Records

The role and importance of porosity in the deflagration rates of HMX-based materials
Conference · Tue Mar 15 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · OSTI ID:1018798

Coefficient of Thermal Expansion of the Beta and Delta Polymorphs of HMX
Journal Article · Tue Jan 11 00:00:00 EST 2005 · Propellants, Explosives, Pyrotechnics · OSTI ID:1018798

Thermal-decomposition studies of HMX
Conference · Tue Oct 20 00:00:00 EDT 1981 · OSTI ID:1018798