Liquid nitrate esters

Though nitroglycerin (NG) is a liquid nitrate ester rather than a nitropolymer, it becomes a polymeric material when it is mixed with plasticizers. Like NC, NG is composed of a hydrocarbon structure with -O-NO2 bonds as oxidizer fragments. 

Burning Rate Behavior of Catalyzed Liquid Nitrate Esters... 

In an attempt to understand the combustion mechanism of catalyzed double-base propellants, several investigators have conducted experiments to measure the burning rates of strands of liquid nitrate esters. The various measurement techniques were very similar to that employed in a conventional solid propellant strand burner. The liquid esters were placed in a tubular container, and the liquid surface regression speeds were measured by optical methods or by the fuse-wire method used in solid-propeUant strand burners. The only important difference between the solid and the liquid strand burning-rate measurements is that the liquid strand burning speed is very much dependent on the diameter of the container. 

Accdg to Baum et al (Ref 13, p 297, it has been known for a long time that liquid nitrated esters (NG, NGc 8c MeN) develop high velocities (6000-8000 m/sec) when initiated with strong detonators (such as No 8 LA), provided the chges are of sufficiently large diam. The same expls develop only ca 1500 mm if diams are small and detonators weak. Investigations recently conducted by Bobolev have shown that this phenomenon takes place also with solid expls, such as PA and solid NG in powder form... 

CA 41, 1842(1947) (Plastic explosives consisting of a liquid nitrate ester and a 1 3 mixture of sol insol Nitrocelluloses)... 

As a result, the sensitiveness of the expl is not diminished when it is used in wet condition. A typical expl formulation of this application is AN and/or KNOg and/or NH4Cl with liquid nitrate ester 3—20 wetting agent 0.001-1%)... 

Limited distribution, not used in this article) 12) A.T. Camp et al, Liquid Nitrate Ester Monopropellant Compositions , USP 3634158... 

This term denotes propellants containing two main components nitrocellulose and nitroglycerine or other liquid nitrate esters. Double base powders are important solid rocket propellants. 

A number of liquid nitrate esters other than nitrocellulose have been recently used, including diglycol dinitrate, metriol trinitrate, and butane-triol trinitrate, of which diglycol dinitrate has been the most extensively employed. Powders prepared with it or with triglycol dinitrate are lower in calories. This fact is relevant to the service life of the gunbarrels in which these powders are utilized. Such powders are known as cold propellants . 

Since it was first synthesized in 1847 [2], nitroglycerin as a main component in liquid explosives, has been tremendously investigated and widely used in mining and other industrial blasting, as well as in military, such as propellant powers. Later, a series of liquid explosives of nitrate ester, such as dinitrate esters, with better explosive property and safety were developed [3-5]. In recent years, the United States has launched studies of high power and low characteristic signal propellants to continuously expand the application range of liquid nitrate esters [6]. 

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