To improve the understanding how aluminum contributes in non‐ideal explosive mixtures, cast‐cured formulations were analyzed in a series of electrical conductivity experiments. Five types of TNT‐based aluminized explosives, with aluminum mass fractions from 0 % to 20 % were considered in this study. The electrical conductivity of the detonation products in aluminized explosives was measured using an improved conductivity measurement method. The conductivity measurement results show that the detonation process of TNT‐based aluminized explosives can be divided into two stages: the first stage is the detonation reaction of TNT, and the second stage is the combustion reaction of aluminum with the detonation products. In the first stage, the duration of the TNT detonation increases with increased aluminum content; examination of the peak conductivities of the explosives with various aluminum contents indicated that a higher aluminum content is associated with a lower peak conductivity. Additionally, the ignition time of Al in the second stage is also determined. This work not only presents a means for studying the detonation process of aluminized explosives at 0–2.21 μs, but it also verified the relationship between the aluminum content and electrical conductivity in detonation products.

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Detonation pressure profiles in TNT/RDX and its mixtures with aluminum powders of different particle size have been studied with Manganin piezoresistance gauge. The measured detonation pressure accorded with the calculated detonation pressure. The results show that micrometer aluminum powders reacted with detonation at times of 0.5μs after the peak pressure. Aluminum powders did not react in the detonation zone, and introducing aluminum into explosive would reduce the detonation pressure. Compare with micrometer aluminum powders, nanometer aluminum powders reacted with detonation product more quickly.