Effect of Energetic Materials on Thermal Decomposition of Phase-Stabilised Ammonium Nitrate - An Eco-Friendly Oxidiser

Abstract

Phase-stabilised ammonium nitrate (PSAN) was prepared by incorporating copper (II) diamine nitrate in the ammonium nitrate (AN) crystal lattice, thereby avoiding the abrupt volume change within the useful temperature range. The effect of RDX on the thermal decomposition of PSAN has been investigated. Decomposition temperatures of PSAN and RDX are almost in the same temperature range. The synergetic effect of the interaction between PSAN and RDX resulted in a net exothermic reaction of PSAN. The kinetic and thermodynamic parameters of the exothermic decomposition have been computed. Two well-known equations based on variable programme heating rate method, viz., Kissinger and Ozawa equations were employed for the kinetic evaluation. The approximate activation energy obtained from Ozawa method was refined by an iteration procedure using the two-term approximation for Arrhenius temperature integral, p(x) and the refinement was found to be unwarranted for the reaction. There is a close agreement between the values of kinetic parameters of the exothermic reaction of PSAN and RDX obtained from the Kissinger and Ozawa methods. "