Experimental insight into co-pyrolysis mechanism of 5-amino 1H-tetrazole/nitrocellulose based pyrotechnic

5-amino-1 H-tetrazole(5AT) recently attracted attention as an environmental-friendly energetic material used in novel propellants. The pyrolysis of 5AT is deemed as the prelude of combustion for 5AT-based propellants, and grasping the pyrolysis mechanisms will be more beneficial to further exploring the combustion behavior of 5AT-based pyrotechnics. In this paper, several efforts have been made to enhance the pyrolysis behavior of 5AT. The employment of nitrocellulose (NC) and KNO₃ have been widely popularized in pyrotechnics and explosives applications. 5AT/NC-based pyrotechnics are prepared via a modified evaporation solvent method. The catalytic effects of nitrocellulose (NC) and KNO₃ on the thermal decomposition mechanism and kinetics behavior of 5AT are deduced by TG-DSC and TG-FTIR-MS analysis. Experimental results reveal that adding NC simplifies the 5AT degradation process to one step together with the production phase transition. Furthermore, the catalytic effect of NC is discovered mainly during the redox reaction of NH₂CN in the first stage, while KNO₃ specifically influences the second stage. Adding KNO₃ can decrease the activation energy and change the reaction model of 5AT/NC-based pyrotechnics (F2). The results of this study suggested that adding NC into 5AT-based pyrotechnics could improve the decomposition efficiency of 5AT, and it provides worthwhile guidance for the understanding and design of eco-friendly pyrotechnics.