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I. R. emission measurements of shocked rocket propellants by time-resolved infrared radiometry

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6520306

This report is a summary of the results of the application of time-resolved radiometry to the study of SDT in VRP, VOY, FKM and ALTU-16. Some of the data have been previously reported. An attempt is made to integrate and correlate all the data in order to arrive at conclusions about the effect of the composition of these propellants on their response to shock stimulus. These propellants were chosen to represent extremes of sensitivity and composition. After a brief description of the gun experiments, the bare propellants results are discussed, followed by KCl overlay experiments. Finally, shredded VRO-2B gun-impact experiments which were done to elucidate the nature of the reactions occurring in porous systems, important for understanding DDT and XDT, are described. Results of infrared radiometry experiments have provided time-resolved temperature and fraction reacted data for a series of shocked propellants with different composition. Results on free surfaces demonstrated the heterogeneity of shock-induced reaction and indicated a wide range of responses. VOY and FKM were found to be highly reactive; VRP and ALTU-16 almost inert. KCl crystal confined experiments allowed the heterogeneity of the shock induced reaction to be confirmed, and the evolution of reaction under pressure was compared to 9404. Confinement smooths the differences between propellants, but VOY remains the standout from the rest.The ordering of shock induced reactivity follows the ordering of calculated HEX and flame temperatures. The KCl experiments show a large early pressure-dependent change in reaction rate which is inconsistent with manganin gauge pressure measurements. The most likely explanation seems to be a rapid binder decomposition reaction, which is highly pressure dependent and which would lead to large pressure increases at longer run distances than available in these experiments.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab., CA (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
W-7405-ENG-48
OSTI ID:
6520306
Report Number(s):
UCID-19726; ON: DE83007356
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English