Preparation and Performance Study of RDX/FATPE Self-Assembled Composite Energetic Microspheres

Achieving simultaneous improvement in safety and energy performance remains a major challenge in energetic materials. In this study, RDX/FATPE composite energetic microspheres were fabricated by using the dispersed-phase transient self-assembly method. By introducing a novel fluorine-containing azide thermoplastic elastomer (FATPE) as a surface binder, the crystal-polymer interface structure was regulated at the molecular scale, thereby realizing the synergistic control of particle size refinement and morphology regularization. Morphological characterizations show that the as-prepared microspheres exhibit a regular spherical structure, with the particle sizes reduced by approximately 87.5%–95.0% and surface defects significantly decreased. Molecular dynamics simulations reveal that FATPE molecular chains possess high interfacial binding energy with the dominant crystal facets of RDX. Structural characterizations confirm that FATPE and RDX exhibit favorable interfacial compatibility and stable physical adsorption. Based on this, thermal properties, mechanical sensitivity, and mechanical properties were tested and compared with those of refined RDX and composite samples prepared by the solvent evaporation method. Compared with raw RDX, the apparent activation energy of thermal decomposition decreased and the critical temperature of thermal explosion ( T b ) increased. Safety performance tests demonstrate that both impact sensitivity and friction sensitivity of the composite microspheres are significantly reduced, while ignition performance is remarkably improved and tensile strength is substantially enhanced. These results demonstrate that the dispersive phase transient self-assembly granulation method exhibits significant advantages in structural control and performance synergistic optimization of composite energetic materials, and further verify the application potential of FATPE as a novel fluorinated energetic binder in high-performance explosive formulations and composite energetic materials.