Plastic‐bonded explosives (PBXes) with different cross‐link densities and based on explosives with different particle size distributions have been compared for their initiation and detonation properties. The investigations showed that HMX‐based formulations become less sensitive at lower cross‐link densities. The shock sensitivity of two RDX‐based formulations differed considerably. This could have been caused by the particle size distribution of the RDX, but it could also be due to the fact that the explosives were obtained from different sources.

The results of a DDT tube test are compared with the outcome of a numerical model. The interaction between the two research methods leads to a better understanding of the DDT phenomenon than each method separately. For the situation tested the way of ignition and the particle diameter appeared to be important factors for the DDT process.

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