Combustion Performances of Spherical Al/AP Nanoenergetic Composites Produced by Solvent Evaporation and Crystallization

In this study, aluminum/ammonium perchlorate (Al/AP) nanocomposites were prepared through a simple solvent evaporation and crystallization method to increase the interfacial contact area between the fuel and oxidizer, thus improving their energetic performances. This is an effective way of obtaining Al nanoparticles, which are desirable, while avoiding aggregation and the introduction of a non-component of solid propellants. The as-prepared nanocomposites were characterized and their exothermic behaviors and combustion performance were tested. Differential thermal analysis results show that compared to raw Al nanoparticles and the simply mixed samples, Al/AP nanocomposites release more heat. Compared to the combustion process of raw Al nanoparticles and the simply mixed samples, that of Al/AP nanocomposites need shorter combustion durations – the duration to maximum flame – and produce a bigger maximum flame. The better energetic performances are attributed to the self-supplying system and larger interfacial contact between the fuel and oxidizer, respectively. The energetic performances of Al/AP nanocomposites with different weight ratios of Al nanoparticles were also studied. Results showed that Al/AP nanocomposites with a 40% weight ratio of Al nanoparticles had the best combustion performance due to the interaction of the rapid accumulation of heat from the reaction between Al and oxygen and the increasing gas generation.