Chemical Speciation and Dynamics in the Surface Combustion Zone of Energetic Materials

Abstract

An overview is presented of the status of chemical measurements of the condensed phase and the near-field gaseous phase of decomposing energetic materials. Various categories of energetic materials are surveyed first. Theexperimental and computational approaches for specifying the most important chemical reactions and rates in the condensed and near-surface gaseous phase are discussed along with the use of these chemical data in qualitative combustion models. Emphasis in the presentation is placed on the nitramines HMX and RDX.