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Title: Shock initiation in heterogeneous explosives

Technical Report ·
OSTI ID:6708683

It is generally accepted that the shock initiation of heterogeneous explosives begins with the formation of hot spots in the vicinity of microstructural defects such as voids, grain boundaries, and phase boundaries where there can be significant localized deformation as a result of material viscosity, plastic work, and intergranular friction. In this report, we describe this phenomenon in the context of a recently developed theory of chemically reacting, multiphase mixtures. In particular, we consider a granular explosive with an energetic binder (e.g. PBX-9404) and represent it as a three-phase, saturated mixture consisting of the granular reactant, the binder phase, and the product gases. Under dynamic loading, viscous dissipation results in high temperatures in the binder phase which subsequently thermally explodes to form product gases. Decomposition of the granular reactant is achieved by laminar grain burning. This model has been incorporated into a 1-D Lagrangian finite-difference code (WONDY) and the evolution of compressive shock and acceleration (ramp) waves have been calculated for PBX-9404. The calculated wave growth at the front, as well as the reaction-induced pressure wave behind the front, are shown to be in good agreement with experimental observations.

Research Organization:
Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (USA)
DOE Contract Number:
AC04-76DP00789
OSTI ID:
6708683
Report Number(s):
SAND-81-2173; ON: DE83002190
Resource Relation:
Other Information: Portions of document are illegible
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English