Facile preparation and synergetic energy releasing of nano-Al@RDX@Viton hollow microspheres

To improve reaction rate of energetic materials, electrospray technology was applied to develop microspheres in which recrystallized cyclotrimethylene trinitramine (RDX) was integrated with nano-Al (nAl) particles and Viton through a two-solvent strategy. Results on morphology properties and chemical heterogeneity demonstrated that the electrosprayed microspheres were hollow spheres containing well-dispersed RDX. It was suggested that RDX nano-crystals adhere tightly on both sides of the nAl@Viton skeletons, thereby increasing the contact area among components. The thermal analysis of the microspheres indicated that nAl particles accelerated the energy release by decreasing the apparent activation energy for microsphere decomposition. Experimental results showed that electrosprayed nAl@RDX@Viton had shorter laser ignition delay and more vigorous combustion flame than the physical mixture, which benefitted from the characteristic structure and synergistic effects of the components.