Martirosyan K.S., Wang L., Luss D.
University of Texas at Brownsville, US
Keywords: boron, carbon nanotube, high-pressure, nanoenergetic materials
Thermite reactions are highly exothermic and may rapidly release high amount of stored chemical energy in the form of heat, light and wave. Nanothermite formulations that use aluminum or magnesium as the reducing agent and Fe2O3, MoO3, WO3 etc as oxidizer have wide range of potential emerging applications due to high energy density and large amount of energy release in shorter time than conventional thermites. In this report, we present the study of the effect of boron and carbon nanotubes (CNT) addition in the reactive mixture on the gas pressure discharge and thermal wave behavior during nanoenergetic reactions. Our experimental results show that additives of boron and carbon nanotube can increase gas peak pressure for some thermite nanocomposites up to 160%. The vaporization of B2O3, CO and CO2 at ~2000ºC increased the gaseous products. The behavioral features of the nanothermite-boron-CNT mixtures indicate potential for applications as propulsion, explosives and pyrotechnic components.
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 1, Nanotechnology 2011: Advanced Materials, CNTs, Particles, Films and Composites
Published: June 13, 2011
Pages: 323 - 326
Industry sector: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Topic: Nanoparticle Synthesis & Applications
ISBN: 978-1-4398-7142-3