Deflagration to detonation transition in weakly confined conditions for a type of potentially novel green primary explosive:Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX hybrid nanocomposites

The properties of the combustion and deflagration to detonation transition(DDT)of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX hybrid nanocomposites,a type of potentially novel lead-free primary explosives,were tested in weakly confined conditions,and the interaction of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite and RDX in the DDT process was studied in detail.Results show that the amount of the Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite has a great effect on the DDT properties of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX nanocomposites.The addition of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite to RDX apparently improves the firing properties of RDX.A small amount of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite greatly increases the initial combustion velocity of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX nanocomposites,accelerating their DDT process.When the contents of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite are less than 20 wt%,the DDT mechanisms of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX nanocomposites follow the distinct abrupt mode,and are consistent with that of RDX,though their DDT processes are different.The RDX added into the Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)nanothermite increases the latter's peak combustion velocity and makes it generate the DDT when the RDX content is at least 10 wt%.RDX plays a key role in the shock compressive combustion,the formation and the properties of the DDT in the flame propagation of nanocomposites.Compared with RDX,the fast DDT of Al/Fe_(2)O_(3)/RDX nanocomposites could be obtained by adjusting the chemical constituents of nanocomposites.

Investigation of Detonative Combustion Characteristics

The pressure and deflagration to detonation transition(DDT)characteristics of acetylene and oxygen flame were studied in a detonation tube.The pressure history and the flame velocity along the tube were measured with high frequency pressure transducers and ion probes.By analyzing the data recorded in the experiment,the detonation wave pressure,post wave pressure and DDT distance were obtained,together with the effects of the initial pressure varying from 2×10^(4)Pa to 10^(5)Pa,equivalence ration from 0.3 to 1.0,and mixture concentration from 60%to 100%.It was found that the detonation pressure was decreased respectively with the decrease of initial pressure,equivalence ratio and mixture concentration,but the DDT distance was enlarged.The DDT distance was found particularly sensitive to mixture concentration.

Numerical Investigation on Detonation Wave through U-bend

Pulse detonation engine (PDE) is expected for a next-generation propulsion system. PDE is a promising engine that can generates power and thrust by using intermittent detonation. Promotion of deflagration to detonation transition (below DDT) is a key issue to realize this system. PDE has experimentally been investigated, and it was confirmed that detonation tubes with U-shaped bends are useful for fast DDT. However, the mechanism of DDT promotion due to U-bends has not been well clarified. In the present study, the influence of a U-bend on detona-tion wave propagation is researched with computational fluid dynamics (CFD). The numerical results show that detonation wave disappears once near the U-bend inlet and restarts after passing through it. In addition, it was found that the use of the U-bend with small channel width and curvature radius can induce fast DDT.

Numerical Research on Effect of Sudden Cross-Section Expansion on Detonation Initiation

Numerical simulation has been performed to investigate the DDT(Deflagration-to-Detonation Transition)mechanism by solving fully compressible reactive flow for hydrogen/air mixtures in tube with sudden cross-section expansion.The results reveal the acceleration action of abrupt cross-section on DDT,which is validated by comparing the run up distance and time with corresponding long annular tube and single tube.Detailed discussion of flow field variations finds that the DDT process in cross-section abrupt tube can be divided into three stages(flame acceleration,transition to detonation,and detonation propagation stages respectively)according to different flame modes.Particularly,it is found that formation of vortex could accelerate DDT by promoting turbulent mixing of hot products and cold reactants.Further comparative analysis on DDT characteristics of cross-section abrupt tube with different annular gap lengths shows that different mechanisms dominate in the single tube zone.The conclusions in present study support the cross-section abrupt tube as a means to enhance DDT and provide an alternative potential in practical pre-detonation initiator and pulse detonation engine applications.