Adiabatic Compression Sensitivity of Liquid Fuels and Monopropellants
Abstract
Liquid rocket fuels and monopropellants can be sensitive to rapid compression. Such liquids may undergo decomposition and their handling may be accompanied with risk. Decomposition produces small gas bubbles in the liquid, which upon rapid compression may cause catastrophic explosions. The rapid compression can result from mechanical shocks applied on the tank containing the liquid or from rapid closure of the valves installed on the lines. It is desirable to determine the conditions that may promote explosive reactions. At AFRL, we constructed an apparatus and established a safe procedure for estimating the sensitivity of propellant materials towards mechanical shocks (Adiabatic Compression Tester). A sample is placed in a stainless steel U-tube, held isothermally at a temperature between 20 and 150 degrees Celsius then exposed to an abrupt mechanical shock of nitrogen gas at a pressure between 6.9 and 20.7 MPa (1000 to 3000 psi). The apparatus is computer interfaced and is driven with LABTECH NOTEBOOK-pro Software. In this presentation, the design of the apparatus is shown, the operating procedure is outlined and the safety issues are addressed. The results obtained on different energetic materials will be presented.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 29, 1999
- Accession Number
- ADA409440
Entities
People
- Ismail M. K. Ismail
- Tom W. Hawkins