Chapter 17 - Chemistry of Detonation Waves in Condensed Phase Explosives

Abstract

Detonation of high density, high energy solid organic explosives produce self-sustaining waves traveling at speeds of 10,000m/s that reach 40GPa pressures and 6000 K temperatures in nanoseconds. This pressure–temperature–time frame is unique and very difficult to study experimentally and theoretically. The Non-Equilibrium Zeldovich–von Neumann–Doring (NEZND) theory was developed to identify the non-equilibrium chemical processes that precede and follow exothermic chemical energy release within these reaction zones of self-sustaining detonation waves in gaseous, liquid, and solid explosives. The NEZND theory, molecular dynamics atomistic scale simulations, and high explosive reactive flow modeling studies are discussed in the chapter. The chapter presents a tightly coupled experimental and theoretical approach to understand the non-equilibrium processes, the reaction pathways, and the equilibrium mixtures created within a detonation wave. Since chemical reaction rates and equilibrium concentrations are controlled by the local temperature in the region of molecules, the most urgent need in explosives research is for the time resolved experimental measurements which are presented. Further references to resources are given.