Novel energetic polymers and metal-hybrid compounds

在信息革命蓬勃发展之后，进入新世纪，能源储存和释放、安全、空间进入等问题成为人们关注的新问题。聚合物基材料，如塑料和复合材料，将在解决这些问题的新技术中发挥重要作用。高能聚合物不是炸药材料，但它们可以用作固体推进剂、炸药配方和气体发生器成分（如汽车安全气囊或其他爆炸驱动安全装置）的粘合剂或核心部件。金属颗粒提供的燃料潜力是液体和气体燃料的几倍。高能聚合物和金属纳米粒子将成为新型高能材料的关键推动者。然而，要实现这一潜力，需要取得重大突破。安全问题减缓了新型高能聚合物生产工艺的发展和扩大规模。感兴趣的金属纳米颗粒，如铝、硼和镁，会迅速被氧化层覆盖，从而降低其燃料价值和保质期。如果缩小金属颗粒的尺寸以提高其反应性的想法被推到了极限，人们可能会考虑合成一种混合化合物，其中金属原子直接结合在聚合物的主链中。这项研究旨在开发创新的工艺和材料，允许在高能材料领域增加聚合物的使用。作为更直接的目标，将考虑合成和开发新的含能聚合物、金属纳米粒子聚合物钝化涂层和金属杂化含能聚合物。拟议的研究是对聚合物技术部门需要创新以面对当代挑战的回答。更智能、可回收的安全气囊、基于金属纳米粉末的超高速推进系统、微型卫星的先进推进器、环保高密度炸药都是潜在应用的例子。这项研究为我们提供了增加高能聚合物反应工程、大分子化学能释放、纳米颗粒悬浮液在聚合物介质中的流变性和分散性的基础知识的机会。

After the blooming of the information revolution, the turn of this new century has seen energy storage and release, security issues and access to space emerged as new preoccupations. Polymer based materials, such as plastics and composites, have an important role to play in the novel technologies that will be developed to address these concerns. Energetic polymers are not explosives materials per say, but they find use as binders or core components in solid propellants, explosives formulations, and gas generator compositions such as automotive airbags or other explosive actuated safety devices. The metal particles offer fuel potential that is several times the one available in liquid and gas fuels. Both of energetic polymers and metal nanoparticles will become key enablers of novel energetic materials. However, to realize this potential, important breakthrough are required. Safety issues slow down the development and scale-up of novel energetic polymers production process. Metal nanoparticles of interest, such as aluminum, boron and magnesium are rapidly covered by an oxide layer reducing their fuel value and shelf-life. If the idea of reducing the size of metal particles to increase their reactivity is push to its limit, one may think of synthesizing a hybrid compound where metal atoms are directly incorporated in the backbone of a polymer. This research is aimed at developing innovative processes and materials allowing for an increased use of polymers in the field of energetic materials. As more immediate objectives, the synthesis and development of new energetic polymers, polymer passivation coatings on metal nanoparticles and metal hybrids energetic polymers will be considered. The proposed research is an answer to a sector of polymer technology in needs of innovation to face contemporary challenges. Smarter and recyclable airbags, hypervelocity propulsion systems based on metal nanopowders, advanced thrusters for micro-satellites, environmentally friendly high density explosives are examples of potential applications. The research offer opportunities to increase our fundamental knowledge about energetic polymers reaction engineering, chemical energy release from macromolecules and rheology and dispersion of nanoparticles suspensions in polymers media.