Hydrogen-bonded self-assembly of purine with picric acid: Super heat-resistant and insensitive explosives

Qamar un Nisa Tariq, Maher un Nisa Tariq, Saira Manzoor, Meiqi Xu, Qiyao Yu*, Jian Guo Zhang

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Recently, significant interest has been directed towards advanced energetic materials due to their high energetic performance with good stability. Achieving a balance between energy and safety using conventional approaches poses a significant challenge. This study employs a promising method for synthesizing thermally stable, insensitive complexes via hydrogen-bonded self-assembly. A vast network of hydrogen bonds is formed between the purine a naturally occurring, readily available compound and picric acid. A series of advanced thermally stable energetic materials (1–3) with a balanced relationship between energy and sensitivity were synthesized through a one-pot, one-step reaction. Notably, these newly synthesized complexes possess a remarkably improved density (1.75–1.79 g·cm−3), better than traditional explosives such as TNT (2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene), HNS (1,1′-[(E)-ethane-1,2-diyl]bis(2,4,6-trinitrobenzene)), and PYX (2,6-bis(picrylamino)-3,5-dinitropyridine), while showing insensitivity to impact and friction. These complexes demonstrate that hydrogen-bonded self-assembly is a simple and effective approach for developing advanced heat-resistant explosives with good energy and safety characteristics. This work also highlights hydrogen-bonded self-assembly as a straightforward and effective strategy for designing next-generation heat-resistant energetic materials using naturally occurring compounds.

Original languageEnglish
Article number159133
JournalChemical Engineering Journal
Volume505
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Feb 2025

Keywords

  • Fused compounds
  • Hydrogen-bonded self-assembly
  • Naturally occurring
  • Thermally stable

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Tariq, Q. U. N., Tariq, M. U. N., Manzoor, S., Xu, M., Yu, Q., & Zhang, J. G. (2025). Hydrogen-bonded self-assembly of purine with picric acid: Super heat-resistant and insensitive explosives. Chemical Engineering Journal, 505, Article 159133. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cej.2024.159133