Infinite diameter explosive

Particle-Size Effects in Explosives at Finite and Infinite Diameters , JApplPhys... 

Malin et al, "Particle Size Effects in Explosives at Finite and Infinite Diameters , jApplPhys 28, 63-69(Jan 1957) 4) G.J. 

These trends may be rationalized, at least in part, from what is known or may be inferred about methods used to arrive at these results in the various laboratories. Factors influencing the reported detonation pressures might include (1) charge diameters in the determination wherein, if too small, detonation properties of some of the less powerful explosives might not yet have reached infinite diameter values and (2) differ-... 

These calculations refer to an infinite plane wave, and in actual explosives which propagate in tubes of finite diameter we have to consider the possibility of energy loss l y lateral expansion. It is usually possible to obtain a reliable value of jDqo, the detonation velocity at infinite diameter, by measuring D at various diameters (d) and extrapolating a D a.gainst Ijd plot to zero Ijd. 

Radial losses of mass, momentum, and energy through the lateral surface of the cylinder do not occur. The detonation wave propagates along the axis of the cylindrical charge and is confined laterally by the infinite diameter explosive (the minimum diameter which can support hydrodynamic detonation at its maximum steady-state rate). 

It has been customary to circumvent these questions via the convenient cal-culational technique of calibrating an a posteriori-iyi Q EOS, once its form has been chosen. Surprisingly, in spite of the uncertainties mentioned, C-J predictions of the detonation velocities of a variety of ideal (fast-acting, infinite diameter ) CHNO explosives have been rather good, within 3-5% of experimental values. For the heavy-metal azides, however, only a few C-J calculations have been reported, and the predictions are only marginally acceptable. 

The initial distribution of radioaerosols from an atmospheric nuclear explosion depends upon condensation and coagulation during the rise and cooling of the fireball. These processes result in small particle sizes of the nuclear weapon debris. For example, Stewart (24) calculated that for yields of about 20 kilotons, the particles coagulated from vaporized materials will reappear as very small particles (with modal radii of the order of 0.1 to 0.01 fi) and remain airborne for long periods. When such particles are carried into the stratosphere by the buoyant lifting of the fireball, it is expected that they will become a quasi-conservative constituent of the stratospheric air. It has been shown that particles with diameters less than lfi have an essentially infinite residence in the atmosphere for sedimentation processes alone (16). 

If the measured detonation velocity (D) is plotted against the reciprocal diameter of the cylindrical charge used (Fig. 3.2b) the detonation velocity for an infinitely large diameter (/), ,) can be extrapolated according to the following equation, where AL is a constant characteristic for the explosive used ... 

Measurements by Lewis and von Elbe [23] of initial reaction rates at 530 °C in a KCl coated Pyrex reaction vessel of diameter 7.4 cm are shown in Fig. 6. For constant total pressure, the rate varies little in hydrogen-rich mixtures but diminishes when the oxygen content increases. The reaction seems more sensitive to the total pressure than it is to mixture composition. The rate diminishes with pressure until the neighbourhood of the second explosion limit is reached. At the limit itself the rate becomes infinite, and very near the limit, within a few torr, Lewis... 

The hydrodynamic approaches assume instantaneous reaction, and apart from a dependence on density, the simplest theories assume detonation parameters to be invariant for a substance and applicable to propagation in infinite, homogeneous (isotropic) media. They give no information on the effect of size or crystal orientation, or on the detailed mechanism by which a detonation propagates. Several theories developed by Jones in the United Kingdom and by Eyring, Wood, and Cook in the United States related detonation velocity to reaction-zone length and explosive diameter, but experimental problems severely limited their validation and application to azides. 

The Universe formation process as a result of the Big Bang is schematically seen as follows. At the most initial moment of explosion, the Universe s size was almost zero, and it itself was infinitely hot. In the process of expansion (the diameter of the Universe increased by 10 for every 10 s) the radiation temperature sharply decreased and reached about 10 billion degrees in few seconds. Such fast expansion, subsequently called inflation, corresponds to an explosive process. At that time, the Universe consisted of electrons, protons, neutrons, neutrinos, and their antiparticles. 

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