ID#: 64
Abstract Title: On the Potential of RDX Dust Detonations for Minefield Breaching
Session Title: Condensed Phase Explosions/Detonations
Session Date: 7/30/01
Session Start Time: 2:00 PM
Contributing Author: Murray, S.B.
Organization: Defence Research Establishment Suffield
Country: Canada
Authors: S.B. Murray, F. Zhang, I.O. Moen, P.A. Thibault, M.A. Baker, Mining Resource Engineering Limited
Short Abstract: Fuel-air explosives (FAE) are used in a variety of military applications. While FAE has certain advantages, the detonation pressures are generally low (e.g., 2 MPa) when conventional hydrocarbon fuels are employed. The present study assesses the potential of high-explosive RDX dust for generating higher pressures. A thin-walled detonation tube was used to create dust suspensions in the first part of the study. Dispersal was facilitated by high-pressure air. Explosive charges were used for initiation purposes. The detonation velocities recorded by a streak camera and the detonation pressures measured by piezo-electric transducers were found to be in general agreement with the Chapman-Jouguet theory. Considerable variability in the pressure data suggested that the dust concentration in the immediate vicinity of the transducer was dominating the measurement. The critical charge mass for direct initiation was found to decrease monotonically with increasing dust concentration. The second part of the study focussed on the possible advantages of inducing deflagration-to-detonation transition (DDT) in a fuel-air cloud incorporating a 100-mm thick RDX suspension near the ground. A steel detonation tube of 80-mm diameter filled with lean acetylene-air was employed for this purpose. Various ignition schemes were used to tune the transition distance. Pressure measurements near the end wall showed that RDX is more effective than aluminum at enhancing the hybrid detonation with peak pressures increasing monotonically with dust concentration. An upper limit in concentration was not realized because of the molecular explosive nature of the dust. Peak pressures during DDT were more than twice the usual detonation pressures.