The chemical compatibility and the adhesion of energetic materials and additive materials exert a strong influence on the sensitivity, safety and performance of a polymer-bonded explosive (PBX). In this study, the chemical compatibility of hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX), pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) with several polymers were evaluated using the vacuum stability test (VST) and the differential scanning calorimetry (DSC); while the adhesion between RDX or PETN and each binder based on these polymers was determined through interfacial characteristics using contact angle measurement. The experimental results demonstrate that RDX and PETN are compatible with polystyrene (PS), nitrocellulose (NC) and fluoroelastomer (FKM) according to the STANAG 4147. Therefore the two polymers can be used as adhesives in PBX composition. Moreover, based on interfacial characteristics such as interfacial tension and work of adhesion, the adhesion between RDX and each binder was predicted to be better than that of PETN.

This work investigates kinetics and thermal decomposition behaviors of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) and two polymer-bonded explosive (PBX) samples created from PETN (named as PBX-PN-85 and PBX-PP-85) using the vacuum stability test (VST) and thermogravimetry (TG/DTG) techniques. Both model-free (isoconversional) and model-fitting methods were applied to determine the kinetic parameters of the thermal decomposition. It was found that kinetic parameters obtained by the modified Kissinger–Akahira–Sunose method (using non-isothermal TG/DTG data) were close to those obtained by the isoconversional and model-fitting methods that use isothermal VST data. The activation energy values of thermal decomposition reactions were 125.6–137.1, 137.3–144.9, and 143.9–152.4 kJ·mol−1 for PBX-PN-85, PETN, and PBX-PP-85, respectively. The results demonstrate the negative effect of the nitrocellulose-based binder in reducing the thermal stability of single PETN, while the polystyrene-based binder seemingly shows no adverse influence on the thermal decomposition of PETN in our presented PBX compositions.

This article presents an investigation of some plasticizers for composite solid propellants. The samples are prepared from the PVC plasticized by the DOP, DOA, and a mixture of DOP/DOA with ammonium perchlorate (AP) oxidizer, aluminum (Al) powder, and iron (III) oxide (Fe2O3). Mechanical properties and thermal characteristics of the samples were determined. The results show that the characteristics of the samples meet the requirements of composite solid propellant such as elastic modulus 176.7 ÷ 202.9 MPa, deformation 28 ÷ 45 %, ignition temperature 304.8 ÷ 308.4°C and thermal stability 0.081 ÷ 0.178 ml/g. The DOP plasticizer is a better effect on plasticization than the DOA. In addition, the sample from PVC/DOA causes more loss of weight and lower thermal stability than that from PVC/DOP.