High‐Pressure Characterization of Two Stereoisomers of Tetranitroester Cyclobutane

Abstract

The high-pressure behavior of two stereoisomeric cyclobutane nitric ester materials were studied at room temperature to near 25 GPa via Raman spectroscopy and powder X-ray diffraction. The materials investigated included [cis-trans-cis]-and [all-cis]-tetranitrate ester cyclobutanes. Over the course of these studies no evidence of polymorphism was observed, highlighting the stability of the ambient pressure crystal structures of the cyclobutanes to conditions near the detonation pressure of the material.Differences were observed between the bulk moduli of the two stereoisomers, suggesting potential tunability in materials response under dynamic conditions through the use of isomeric materials. Such findings suggest that these highperformance materials can serve as TNT replacement in novel melt-castable energetic formulations without the concern of uncontrolled polymorphism that might otherwise affect the performance and safety of a munition.