Ordnance propellant

Ordnance propellants are required to give the minimum of muzzle flash, smoke and barrel erosion. All these objectives are assisted by adding to the propellant a proportion of nitroguanidine (picrite), made by treating guanidine nitrate with sulphuric acid and brought to very fine particle size by recrystallisation and disintegration. 

The design of propellants for solid fuel rockets differs considerably from that for ordnance, because of the lower operating pressures, usually below 15 MPa. To understand the principles involved it is first necessary to give a brief account of rocket propulsion. In this account considerations will be restricted to motors based on solid propellants. Motors based on liquid fuels, such as petroleum fractions and liquid oxygen, depend on combustion processes of non-explosive type. 

Penner, S. S. Chemical Rocket Propulsion and Combustion Research, Gordon Breach, New York, London 1962 Hagenmuller, P Les Propergols, Gauthiers-Villars, Paris 1966 Pollard, F.B. und Arnold, J.H. Aerospace Ordnance Handbook, Prentice Hall, Englewood, New Jersey 1966 Samer, S.F. Propellant Chemistry, Reinhold, New York 1966 Dadieu, A., Damm, R. und Schmidt, E. W. Raketentreibstoffe, Springer, Wien 1968... 

Explosives, Propellants and Pyrotechnic Safety Covering Laboratory, Pilot Plant and Production Operations Manual AD-272-424, Washington, US Naval Ordnance Laboratory, 1962... 

Some liquid nitro compounds have found past use in explosive compositions. A mixture of 2,4-dinitroethylbenzene and 2,4,6-trinitroethylbenzene, known as K-10, currently finds use as an energetic plasticizer in some propellant formulations. K-10 plasticizer, also known as Rowanite 8001, is manufactured by Royal Ordnance in the UK and also finds use as a plasticizer in PBXs. 

E. E. Baroody and G. A. Carpenter, Heats of Formation of Propellant Compounds, Rep. Naval Ordnance Systems Command Task No. 331-003/067-1/UR2402-001 for Naval Ordnance Station, Indian Head, MD, 1972, pp. 1-9. 

Hydrogen Gun.. A gun that shoots bullets at a speed of 4 miles per sec (or even faster) was constructed by E. B. Mayfield of the Naval Ordnance Test Station, Inyokern, California. The propellant is liquid hydrogen touched off by an injection of oxygen and the projectiles are smaller than rifle bullets. The prime purpose of this gun is the study of what happens when a projectile moves through air at very high speeds Ref Anon, Ordn 36, (No 191), 780 (1952)... 

C. G. Storm, 34, 7605 (1940) and Army Ordnance, 21, 20-30 (1940) Methods of improving ignition of propellant charges are discussed... 

Ethanol -i- Ether, as "Residual Solvent" Determination in Single-Base Propellants (US Ordnance Methods). Determine the percentage of total volatiles (Solvents + Moisture), then of moisture and subtract percentage of moisture from percent of total volatiles to obtain residual solvent... 

Vol 2, Pt 3 (1963), Chapter 32, pp 1283 to 1410, "Explosives and Propellants by Raymond H. Pierson of US Ordnance Test Station, China Lake, Calif. It includes ... 

Flame Thrower—Ml 32A (Amer). A self-propelled device (designed and manufd at Edgewood Arsenal, Md) which is capable of throwing a steady stream of flame more than 150 yards. Operated by a two-man crew, the thrower can fire continuously for 30 seconds or may be fired in bursts Ref Anon, Ordnance, July-August 1968, p 30-L... 

Flash Reducer. In US Ordnance, any material issued separately for use with a propelling charge to reduce its muzzle flash. Differs from "flash suppressor (qv)... 

Encycl, under Cartridges and Cartridge-Actuated Devices (CAD s), called Propellant Actuated Devices (PAD s) by US Ordnance Corps and Power Cartridges by USNaval-... 

It was adopted by the US Ordnance Dept (Ref 2), but the temperatures of the test were 120° for double-base propellants and 134.5° for single-base propellants for NC s (Ref 3). Litmus paper was originally used in this test (Refs 1 8c 2) but later this was changed id methyl violet paper and the test was called the Methyl Violet Test Apparatus ... 

The unusual sensitivity of some composite-modified double-phase propellants before curing has justified intensive effort to exploit a nonmechanical mixing process. First introduced in about 1959 as the quick-mix process by Rocketdyne Division of North American Aviation (5, 10), the inert diluent process has been developed at the Naval Ordnance Station, Indian Head, Md. for application to a variety of propellant compositions. Separate streams of solids, slurried in heptane, and an emulsion of plasticizers in heptane, are combined in a non-mechanical mixing chamber. The complete propellant slurry is allowed to settle, and the heptane is separated and recycled in a continuous operation. Figure 1... 

Mobile weapon systems include the ordnance weapon systems, such as the air-to-air, air-to-surface, surface-to-air, and short-range, surface-to-surface missile. Because of the limited volume requirements, heavy emphasis is placed on density impulse. These systems are completely prepackaged (including propellants) and require complete storability of the propellant as a liquid over a temperature range — 65°-160°F. Because of personnel proximity at all times, toxicity is sometimes an important factor. The large number of units which are utilized usually imposes restrictions on propellant cost. 

The ordnance commonly used by the military also includes small arms ammunition, large caliber guns (tank guns), projectiles, rockets and missiles. A propellant (low explosive which undergoes rapid and controlled combustion without detona-... 

A solid fuel containing a mixture of wood flour and DB propellant as a binder can provide adequate heat energy to warm food and to prepare tea or coffee. These fuels are highly cost-effective as the ingredients, particularly the DB propellants, are either from the waste available in plenty from the ordnance factories or life-expired DB propellants available from the armed services. This also reduces the disposal problem of DB propellant waste to a large extent. 

Virendra, K., Agrawal, A.P., Muthurajan, H and Agrawal, J.P. (2002) BNCP a novel DDT explosive and its applications. Presented at the Seminar on Propellants and Explosives at the Ordnance Factory, Bhandara, India, Jan. 2-3. 

HAN-based aqueous system as a gun propellant was first proposed by the personnel at the Naval Ordnance Station, Indiana Head, MD, USA. 

Specification Requirements for Acetone Used in Ordnance, Acetone intended for use as a solvent in prepn of propellants and pentolite... 

Alkyl Hydrazines are described under individual compds, if they are expls or used in Ordnance. The major physical and chemical props of a large number of alkyl-substituted hydrazines, currently of interest in the rocket propellant field, were detd by R.CHarshman at the Olin Mathieson Chem Corp, Niagara Falls, NY and discussed in Jet Propulsion 27, 398-9(1957)... 

Aranas, Ricardo. A Spanish general specializing in Ordnance, who died in 1932. In 1906 he introduced in Spain the modem progressive smokeless propellants and did considerable work on their improvement. He also did some work on HE s such as retry , and was the author of several publications On expls and propellants Refs l)Perez Ara( 1945),426 429 2) Vivas, Feigenspan Ladreda, vol 3 (1948), Bbffootnote) 212... 

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