Thermite and intermetallic projectiles examined experimentally in air and inert gas environments

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dc.creatorCroessmann, Charles Luke (TTU)
dc.creatorCagle, Colton (TTU)
dc.creatorDube, Pascal
dc.creatorAbraham, Joseph
dc.creatorAltman, Igor
dc.creatorPantoya, Michelle L. (TTU)
dc.date.accessioned2022-07-13T18:20:23Z
dc.date.available2022-07-13T18:20:23Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.description© 2022 Author(s). All article content, except where otherwise noted, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).en_US
dc.description.abstractIntermetallic (aluminum and zirconium) and thermite (aluminum and molybdenum trioxide) projectiles were launched using a high velocity impact ignition testing system. The experiments were designed to simulate reactivity in high (argon) and low (air) altitude environments. The projectiles were launched into a chamber that included a steel target plate for projectile penetration before impacting a rear witness plate. The chamber was semi-sealed and instrumented for quasi-static pressure data. The results provide an understanding of energy release from the projectile materials and of the environmental influence on performance. The transient pressure traces provide insight into reaction kinetics. A bifurcation in transient pressure rise was an indication of a shift in reaction kinetics from the inherent reactive material to metal oxidation with the environment. The bifurcation was delayed by about 0.15 ms for the intermetallic relative to the thermite, evidence that the thermite reaction proceeded faster upon impact than the intermetallic. The two-step process (impact ignition of the reactive material followed by metal oxidation) was shown to produce higher energy conversion efficiencies than projectiles composed of pure fuel (i.e., aluminum) reported previously. Both reactive materials showed energy conversion efficiencies greater than 30% (for air) and 50% (for argon), and an explanation of underestimated efficiency and energy losses is provided. These results have implications for advancing formulations for ballistic applications. Structural reactive materials can be used to modify the effective reactivity of metal-containing formulations in varied atmospheric environments.en_US
dc.identifier.citationCharles Luke Croessmann, Colton Cagle, Pascal Dube, Joseph Abraham, Igor Altman, and Michelle L. Pantoya , "Thermite and intermetallic projectiles examined experimentally in air and inert gas environments", Journal of Applied Physics 131, 175904 (2022) https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0087577en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://doi.org/10.1063/5.0087577
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2346/89922
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.subjectEnergy Conversion Efficienciesen_US
dc.subjectProjectile Fragmentationen_US
dc.subjectEnergy Production, Transmission, and Distributionen_US
dc.subjectChemical Kinetics and Dynamicsen_US
dc.subjectCalorimetryen_US
dc.subjectPressure Bomben_US
dc.subjectBallisticsen_US
dc.subjectChemical Energyen_US
dc.subjectImpact Testingen_US
dc.subjectReaction Mechanismsen_US
dc.titleThermite and intermetallic projectiles examined experimentally in air and inert gas environmentsen_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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