Richards, Lisa A;
(2019)
The Migration of Plasticisers and Interaction of Nitrogen Dioxide and Water in Nitrocellulose Binder Systems.
Doctoral thesis (Ph.D), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
A nitrocellulose binder holds the explosive ingredients together in a polymer bonded explosive or propellant. The binder dissipates energy from hazardous stimuli with the aim of producing a less sensitive explosive. To improve the overall mechanical properties of a binder a plasticiser is added, however plasticiser migration from the binder polymer matrix deteriorates the mechanical properties and reduces the service life of the energetic material. To assess the migration of the plasticisers 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene, 2,4,6-trinitroethylbenzene and 1-nitramino-2,3-dinitroxypropane from each of the nitrocellulose binders, diffusion coefficients and activation energies of diffusion were obtained for each plasticiser molecule via molecular dynamics simulation. The two nitrocellulose binder systems also underwent molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the interaction of water and nitrogen dioxide in each system. Reaction of nitrogen dioxide with water produces nitric acid which is thought to further react and degrade the nitrocellulose. Plasticiser migration was found to be faster in a nitrocellulose binder plasticised with 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene and 2,4,6-trinitroethylbenzene compared to a nitrocellulose binder plasticised with 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene and 1-nitramino-2,3-dinitroxypropane. The formation of nitric acid was more likely in a nitrocellulose binder plasticised with 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene and 2,4,6-trinitroethylbenzene compared to a nitrocellulose binder plasticised with 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene and 1-nitramino-2,3-dinitroxypropane. Force fields were parameterised for each binder component. Force fields were derived for the plasticiser molecules, the stabiliser ethyl centralite, nitrogen dioxide and nitrocellulose. The Lennard-Jones parameters were refined for each individual binder ingredient and the overall nitrocellulose binder systems until the simulated densities were within 2% of the experimental values.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | Ph.D |
| Title: | The Migration of Plasticisers and Interaction of Nitrogen Dioxide and Water in Nitrocellulose Binder Systems |
| Event: | UCL (University College London) |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author 2019. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. |
| UCL classification: | UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Chemistry |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10067193 |
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