Although the response of energetic materials to low velocity impact have been studied with high speed visible imaging, the response to the IR and acoustic is still not known. Hot spot generation in energetic material is an important process to initiate the exothermic chemical reaction; therefore loading weak energy (~30THz optical frequency or 20kHz acoustic frequency) to the energetic materials allows us to study the process non-destructively or avoiding deflagration-to-detonation transitions. A high-speed thermal imaging microscopy apparatus was constructed to observe hot spot generation by weak energies, to develop the fundamental science needed to understand energy concentration mechanisms leading to hot spot generation. Crystals with and without polymer binders prepared for the experiments are inhomogeneous to initiate the hot spot, and recorded by our thermal imaging camera. We have successfully recorded the hot spot grown in the 1,3,5-trinitroperhydro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) crystal and polymer-bonded sugar simulant by applying Far-IR radiation (~30THz) and acoustic sonication (20kHz) respectively. The data were collected for preliminary analysis to study the mechanism of hot spot generation.

Thermal imaging microscopy detecting hot spot generation in energetic materials by weak energies

246th National Meeting (2013)

The official archive and repository for all ACS Meetings & Expositions abstracts and select posters or presentations.