TY - JOUR
T1 - Exploration of super heat-resistant monomeric explosive featuring triptycene core structure
AU - Xu, Zhibin
AU - Yan, Xiaorui
AU - Xie, Junjian
AU - Wang, Jian
AU - Liu, Junjie
AU - Hou, Xiaowen
AU - Meng, Zihui
AU - Xiu-tian-feng, E.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025
PY - 2025/2/1
Y1 - 2025/2/1
N2 - Over the last few decades, the research for energetic materials with ultrahigh heat resistance and good energy level has been a highly severe challenge. In this study, a novel heat-resistant compound, 2,3,6,7,14,15-hexanitrotriptycene was developed through triptycene as core structure. Density functional theory (DFT) was employed to predict the energetic properties and synthesis difficulty of five designed triptycene-based compounds. Subsequently, a straightforward and efficient two-step synthesis process was adopted: two isomers of trinitrotriptycene with a yield of 93.8 % were synthesized via an improved Menke nitration method, and then hexanitrotriptycene was obtained with a yield of 74.0 % via an optimized process. Structure characterization confirmed the nitro substitution positions of trinitrotriptycene and trinitrotriptycene. Among them, 2,3,6,7,14,15-hexanitrotriptycene with low sensitivity (IS > 20 J, FS > 360 N) shows an ultrahigh thermal decomposition temperature of 414 °C and exhibits no decomposition after 4 h’ heating at 390 °C, which is extremely rare in the field of heat resistant explosives. Its enhanced density (1.81 g·cm−3) and energy level (detonation velocity: 7682 m‧s−1) is comparable to several commonly used heat-resistant explosives such as HNS, PYX, and NONA. These prominent properties of hexanitrotriptycene support it as an advanced heat resistant explosive with great promise.
AB - Over the last few decades, the research for energetic materials with ultrahigh heat resistance and good energy level has been a highly severe challenge. In this study, a novel heat-resistant compound, 2,3,6,7,14,15-hexanitrotriptycene was developed through triptycene as core structure. Density functional theory (DFT) was employed to predict the energetic properties and synthesis difficulty of five designed triptycene-based compounds. Subsequently, a straightforward and efficient two-step synthesis process was adopted: two isomers of trinitrotriptycene with a yield of 93.8 % were synthesized via an improved Menke nitration method, and then hexanitrotriptycene was obtained with a yield of 74.0 % via an optimized process. Structure characterization confirmed the nitro substitution positions of trinitrotriptycene and trinitrotriptycene. Among them, 2,3,6,7,14,15-hexanitrotriptycene with low sensitivity (IS > 20 J, FS > 360 N) shows an ultrahigh thermal decomposition temperature of 414 °C and exhibits no decomposition after 4 h’ heating at 390 °C, which is extremely rare in the field of heat resistant explosives. Its enhanced density (1.81 g·cm−3) and energy level (detonation velocity: 7682 m‧s−1) is comparable to several commonly used heat-resistant explosives such as HNS, PYX, and NONA. These prominent properties of hexanitrotriptycene support it as an advanced heat resistant explosive with great promise.
KW - Detonation performances
KW - Hexanitrotriptycene
KW - Nitration
KW - Thermal property
KW - Triptycene
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85215234436&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.cej.2025.159510
DO - 10.1016/j.cej.2025.159510
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85215234436
SN - 1385-8947
VL - 505
JO - Chemical Engineering Journal
JF - Chemical Engineering Journal
M1 - 159510
ER -