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Synthesis of New Oxidizers for Potential Use in Chemical Rocket Propulsion

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Chemical Rocket Propulsion

Part of the book series: Springer Aerospace Technology ((SAT))

Abstract

The currently used oxidizer for solid rocket propellants – ammonium perchlorate (AP) – has been detected as hazardous to human’s thyroid gland, amphibian pigmentation and growth, and a large number of maritime life forms. Presently used or tested perchlorate-free alternatives like ammonium nitrate or ammonium dinitramide overcome these harms while showing up new problems like polymorphism, hygroscopicity, or a low thermal stability. Therefore, research is further driven toward environmentally more acceptable and strong oxidizers. One strategy is the synthesis of neutral CHNO-based materials for full or partial replacement of AP. Here we report about several new compounds with positive oxygen balance that were synthesized within our group over the last few years. The main focus is on the syntheses of molecules containing the trinitromethyl functionality due to the high oxygen content of this group. In addition the analogue fluorodinitromethyl derivatives were investigated for comparison. The prepared materials were chemically characterized, and in addition the sensitivities toward impact, friction, and electrostatic discharge were determined experimentally. Furthermore, the performances regarding the specific impulse of aluminized mixtures of the compounds were calculated using the Explo5 computer code.

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Acknowledgements

Financial support of this work by the Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich (LMU), the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) under grant no. W911NF-09-2-0018, the Armament Research Development and Engineering Center (ARDEC) under grant nos. W911NF-12-1-0467 and W911NF-12-1-0468, and the Office of Naval Research (ONR) under grant nos. ONR.N00014-10-1-0535 and ONR.N00014-12-1-0538 is gratefully acknowledged. The authors acknowledge collaborations with Dr. Mila Krupka (OZM Research, Czech Republic) in the development of new testing and evaluation methods for energetic materials and with Dr. Muhamed Suceska (Brodarski Institut, Croatia) in the development of new computational codes to predict the detonation and propulsion parameters of novel energetic materials. We are indebted to and thank Drs. Betsy M. Rice and Brad Forch (ARL, Aberdeen, Proving Ground, MD) for many inspired discussions. The co-workers associated with this project are Regina Scharf, Camilla Evangelisti, Quirin J. Axthammer, Sebastian F. Rest, Dr. Michael Göbel, Dr. Davin Piercey, and Dr. Richard Moll in the course of their doctoral research studies. They are gratefully thanked for their challenging synthetic efforts and for forming a flexible “Oxidizer Team.”

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Energetic Materials Research, Ludwig-Maximilian University of Munich, 81377, Munich, Germany

    Marcos A. Kettner & Thomas M. Klapötke

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  1. Marcos A. Kettner
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  2. Thomas M. Klapötke
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Correspondence to Thomas M. Klapötke .

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  1. Space Propulsion Laboratory (SPLab) Department of Aerospace Science and Technology, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

    Luigi T. De Luca

  2. Institute of Space and Astronautical Science (ISAS), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), Sagamihara, Japan

    Toru Shimada

  3. Department of Chemical Engineering, Mendeleev University of Chemical Technology, Moscow, Russia

    Valery P. Sinditskii

  4. The Inner Arch, Poissy, France

    Max Calabro

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Kettner, M.A., Klapötke, T.M. (2017). Synthesis of New Oxidizers for Potential Use in Chemical Rocket Propulsion. In: De Luca, L., Shimada, T., Sinditskii, V., Calabro, M. (eds) Chemical Rocket Propulsion. Springer Aerospace Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27748-6_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-27748-6_2

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