A variety of methods have been developed to enhance solid propellant burning rates, including adjusting oxidizer particle size, changing the formulation, modifying the propellant core geometry, and adding catalysts or wires. Fully consumable reactive wires embedded in propellant have been demonstrated to increase the burning rate by increasing the surface area; however, the observation of this effect has been limited to viewing via an intrusive window next to the wire. Here, dynamic X-ray radiography is employed to analyze the evolution of the internal burning profile of propellant embedded with additively manufactured reactive components. This avoids heat loss at the window and allows analysis of the three-dimensional volumetric consumption of strands with internal branching geometries. Printable reactive wires made of aluminum/polyvinylidene fluoride were embedded as single wires, pitchforks, and U- and V-shaped geometries. The nano-aluminum-based formulation produced cone-shaped burning surfaces at 1 atm without the ejection of unburned propellant, even for multiple wires burning in close proximity. The results demonstrate a route to preferentially tailor the internal burning profile of propellants with embedded printable reactive wires and a dynamic X-ray imaging technique to qualitatively and quantitatively characterize the complex internal perforation development.


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    Title :

    Dynamic X-Ray Imaging of Additively Manufactured Reactive Components in Solid Propellants



    Published in:

    Publication date :

    2021-05-01




    Type of media :

    Conference paper , Article (Journal)


    Type of material :

    Electronic Resource


    Language :

    English



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