Influences of aging on thermal decomposition mechanism of high performance oxidizer ammonium dinitramide

Ammonium dinitramide (ADN) is one of the several promising new solid propellant oxidizers. ADN is of interest because its oxygen balance and energy content are high, and it also halogen-free. One of the most important characteristics of a propellant oxidizer, however, is stability and ADN is known to degrade to ammonium nitrate (AN) during storage, which will affect its performance. This study focused on the effects of aging on the thermal decomposition mechanism of ADN. The thermal behaviors of ADN and ADN/AN mixtures were studied, as were the gases evolved during their decomposition, using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis-infrared spectrometry (TG–DTA-IR), and thermogravimetry–differential thermal analysis-mass spectrometry (TG–DTA-MS). The results of these analyses demonstrated that the decomposition of ADN occurs via a series of distinct stages in the condensed phase. The gases evolved from ADN decomposition were N₂O, NO₂, N₂, and H₂O. In contrast, ADN mixed with AN (to simulate aging) did not exhibit the same initial reaction. We conclude that aging inhibits early stage, low temperature decomposition reactions of ADN. Two possible reasons were proposed, these being either a decrease in the acidity of the material due to the presence of AN, or inhibition of the acidic dissociation of dinitramic acid by NO ₃ ^? .     

Influence of Copper from the Kuprikol 50 Fungicide on Colorado Potato Beetle Adults Studied by Radionuclide X-Ray Fluorescence Analysis

The influence of copper on adults of the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say) was studied. The adults were treated by the contact fungicide Kuprikol 50, which is used to control down powder mildew (Phytophtora infestans de Bary). Copper content was determined by radio-nuclide X-ray fluorescence analysis using a ²³⁸Pu exciting source. The obtained results contribute to the control measures against the Colorado potato beetle and to the question of the resistance of Colorado potato beetle towards pyrethroide insecticides.     

Geological influence on the activity concentration of terrestrial radionuclides 226Ra, 232Th and 40K in the Jos Plateau,Nigeria

The Jos Plateau has been reported to have elevated levels of natural background radiation. A few earlier studies have measured the levels of natural radioactivity for specific locations in the area. Our interest is to investigate how geology of the study area influences the activity concentrations of natural radionuclides. Thus, the activity concentrations of terrestrial radionuclides in soil samples collected across the geological formations of the Jos Plateau were determined by gamma spectrometry technique. The mean activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K were found to exceed their corresponding world reference values of 35, 40 and 400?Bq?kg^?1, respectively. Data were compared using statistical methods, analysis of variance (ANOVA) and post hoc tests. The results revealed in some instances significant influences of geological types on the activity concentrations in the area. The spatial distribution maps of activity concentrations of ²²⁶Ra, ²³²Th and ⁴⁰K were geostatistically interpolated by ordinary Kriging method using ArcGIS software.     

Analysis of a linearization heuristic for single-machine scheduling to maximize profit

We consider the problem of schedulingn jobs without preemption on a single machine to maximize total profit, where profit is given by a nonincreasing, concave separable function of job starting times. A heuristic is given in which jobs are sequenced optimally relative to a specific linear approximation of the profit, function. This heuristic always obtains at least 2/3 of the optimal profit, and examples exist where the heuristic obtains only 2/3 of the optimal profit. A large class of alternative linearizations is considrred and shown to give arbitrarily bad results. Work supported in part by NSF Grant ECS 82-05438 to the University of Pennsylvania and ONR Contract N00014-81-C-0302.     

Thermal behavior of ammonium dinitramide and amine nitrate mixtures

Journal of Thermal Analysis and Calorimetry - This paper focuses on the thermal behavior of mixtures of ammonium dinitramide (ADN) and amine nitrates. Because some mixtures of ADN and amine nitrate...     

Dynamics analysis of a quarantine model in two patches

A new deterministic model for assessing the impact of quarantine on the transmission dynamics of a communicable disease in a two‐patch community is designed. Rigorous analysis of the model shows that the imperfect nature of quarantine (in the two patches) could induce the phenomenon of backward bifurcation when the associated reproduction number of the model is less than unity. For the case when quarantined susceptible individuals do not acquire infection during quarantine, the disease‐free equilibrium of the model is shown to be globally asymptotically stable when the associated reproduction number is less than unity. Furthermore, the model has a unique Patch i‐only boundary equilibrium (i = 1,2) whenever the associated reproduction number for Patch i is greater than unity. The unique Patch i‐only boundary equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable whenever the invasion reproduction number of Patch 3 ? i is less than unity (and the associated reproduction number for Patch i exceeds unity). The model has at least one endemic equilibrium when its reproduction number exceeds unity (and the disease persists in both patches in this case). It is shown that adding multi‐patch dynamics to a single‐patch quarantine model (which allow the quarantine of susceptible individuals) in a single patch does not alter its quantitative dynamics (with respect to the existence and asymptotic stability of its associated equilibria as well as its backward bifurcation property). Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Determination of copper in pupae and adults of the Colorado potato beetle (Leptinotarsa decemlineata Say) by radionuclide X-ray fluorescence technique

The radionuclide X-ray fluorescence method was used to determine copper contents in insects.     

Thermal behavior of new oxidizer ammonium dinitramide

Ammonium dinitramide (ADN) is a promising new oxidizer for solid propellants because of its high oxygen balance and high energy content, and halogen-free combustion products. One of the characteristics needed for solid propellants is stability. Heat, light, and moisture are factors affecting stability during storage, manufacture, and use. For practical use of ADN as a solid propellant, clarification of the mechanism of decomposition by these factors is needed to be able to predict lifetime. This study focused on thermal decomposition of ADN. Exothermal behavior of ADN decomposition was measured by isothermal tests using high-sensitive calorimetry (TAM) and non-isothermal tests using differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Based on these results, analysis of the decomposition kinetics was conducted. The activation energy determined by TAM tests was lower than that from DSC tests. Thus, the decomposition path in TAM tests was different from that in DSC tests. The amount of ADN decomposition predicted from TAM tests was closer to that found under real storage conditions than the amount of decomposition predicted from DSC tests. Non-isothermal tests may not be able to precisely predict the lifetime of materials with a decomposition mechanism that changes with temperature, such as ADN. The lifetime predicted from DSC results was much longer than that from TAM tests especially at low temperature. It is necessary to use isothermal tests to predict the long-term stability at low temperature.     

Thermal decomposition of the high-performance oxidizer ammonium dinitramide under pressure

Ammonium dinitramide (ADN) is a promising new oxidizer for solid propellants because it possesses both high oxygen balance and high energy content, and does not contain halogen atoms. A necessary characteristic of solid propellants is chemical stability under various conditions. This study focused on the thermal decomposition mechanism of ADN under pressurized conditions. The pressure was adjusted from 0.1 to 6 MPa, while ADN was heated at a constant rate. The exothermal behavior and the decomposition products in the condensed phase during heating were measured simultaneously using pressure differential scanning calorimetry (PDSC) and Raman spectrometry. PDSC analyses showed the multiple stages of exotherms after melting. The exothermal behavior at low temperatures varied with pressure. Analysis of the decomposition products indicated that ammonium nitrate (AN) was generated during decomposition of ADN at all pressures. At normal pressure, AN was produced at the same time as start of exotherm. However, the temperature at which the ratio of ADN in chemical species in the condensed phase began to decrease under high pressure was higher than that at atmospheric pressure despite the existence of significant exotherm. At initial stage, thermal decomposition of ADN that does not generate AN was thought to be promoted by increased pressure.     

Effect of polymer addition amount and type on thermal decomposition behavior of spray-dried particles comprising ammonium nitrate,potassium nitrate,and polymer

Certain properties of ammonium nitrate (AN), such as high hygroscopicity and the thermal transformation of the crystal structure accompanied by volume changes, pose problems for industrial applications of AN. To solve these problems, we previously prepared AN-based particles by spray-drying. The particles contained potassium nitrate (PN) as a phase stabilizer and a polymer (e.g., PVA, CMCs, and Latex) to produce a moisture-resistant material. Herein, we investigate the thermal decomposition of spray-dried AN/PN/polymer particles by differential scanning calorimetry and Thermogravimetry–Differential thermal analysis. Comparison of the thermal decomposition of AN/PN/polymer materials with different amounts and types of polymers suggested that thermal decomposition at lower temperatures resulted from the reaction of AN with the molten polymer or decomposition products derived from the polymer. Therefore, it can be concluded that the thermal stability of the AN/PN/polymer was exclusively determined by the thermal properties of the polymer components.