Surfactant-Assisted Preparation of Nanoscale Cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX) Film Explosives in a Bacterial Cellulose Gelatin Matrix

Abstract

Cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX) is a nitroamine explosive widely used in military applications because of its good explosive and safety properties. Using bacterial cellulose (BC) gelatin with a three-dimensional network as a carrier and sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) and p-octyl polyethylene glycol phenylether (OP) as surfactants, nanoscale RDX films were prepared by a solvent/nonsolvent method. It was found that the granularity distribution of RDX in the films in the presence of SDBS and OP in the RDX solution was very uniform compared to the granularity distribution in the absence of surfactant. The surfactants also improved the dispersion of RDX in the film and the adhesion of RDX onto the network of BC gelatin, leading to an increase of RDX content in the film. Corresponding contents of RDX in the presence of SDBS and OP are 82.59 and 84.47% in the films, respectively, increasing RDX content by 7.23 and 9.11% over the films without surfactants.