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Title: Hydrothermal treatment of hazardous energetic materials waste

Conference ·
OSTI ID:210553
; ;  [1]
  1. Univ. of Delaware, Newark, DE (United States)

Destruction of energetic materials by hydrothermal methods presents a potential for strongly exothermic oxidation-reduction reactions, which, if localized at a site in the reactor, create {open_quotes}hot spots{close_quotes}. To investigate highly exothermic hydrothermal reactions, real-time spectroscopic measurements in the stream by infrared and Raman spectroscopy offer opportunities. Flow reactor-spectroscopy cells were developed for such studies, focusing on approximately oxygen-balanced nitrate salts for which highly exothermic reactions can occur. In addition, the kinetics of formation of later stage products were studied because these products are likely to be released to the environment and to be regulated. An experiment was designed to simulate the occurence of a phase separation in a reactor followed by rapid exothermic reaction. By varying the pressure, water content, and hydrogen content in the reaction volume of the cell, the freeze out temperatures required to set the carbon monoxide/carbon dioxide ratio were determined to be 1300 to 1470 K. Such high temperatures suggest that localized hot spots can exist which greatly exceed the overall set temperature of the reactor. This scenario can occur if a phase separation occurs to isolate ethylenediammonium dinitrate in quantities as small as tenths of milligrams. Studies of the oxidation-reduction reactions of nitrate ion with the counter ion show that the oxidizing power of the nitrate ion is realized provided a readily oxidizable cation such as hydroxylammonium is present. When the cation has a low reactivity, such as quanidinium, a much higher reaction temperature is required before the nitrate ion reacts. At this temperature, the cation may have already begun to decompose by a hydrothermal route.

OSTI ID:
210553
Report Number(s):
CONF-9509139-; TRN: 95:008324-0419
Resource Relation:
Conference: 7. ACS special symposium: emerging technologies in hazardous waste management, Atlanta, GA (United States), 17-20 Sep 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Emerging technologies in hazardous waste management VII; Tedder, D.W. [ed.]; PB: 1352 p.
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English