Preparation and Characterization of Nano-CL-20/TNT Cocrystal Explosives by Mechanical Ball-Milling Method

Abstract

Nano-CL-20/TNT cocrystal explosive was successfully prepared by mechanical ball milling with 0.38 mm grinding beads. The micromorphology and particle size of cocrystal explosive were characterized by scanning electron microscopy. The average particle size of nano-CL-20/TNT cocrystal explosive was 119.5 nm and showed a spherical-like micromorphology. The crystal structure of cocrystal explosive was characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, infrared spectroscopy, and Raman spectroscopy. The results show that mechanical ball milling does not change the molecular structure of the raw material, but the sample after ball milling has a new crystal phase, rather than a simple mixing of raw materials. Differential scanning calorimetry tests show that nano-CL-20/TNT cocrystal explosive has a higher decomposition temperature; impact sensitivity tests show that the properties of cocrystal explosive are 26 and 21.7 cm higher than those of CL-20 and CL-20/TNT mixture, respectively, which indicates that nano-CL-20/TNT cocrystal explosive has better thermal stability and safety.