Novel energetic polymers and metal-hybrid compounds

在信息革命蓬勃发展的新世纪之交，能源储存和释放、安全问题和进入太空成为新的当务之急。基于聚合物的材料，如塑料和复合材料，在将为解决这些问题而开发的新技术中发挥着重要作用。高能聚合物本身并不是爆炸物材料，但它们在固体推进剂、炸药配方和气体发生器组合物(如汽车安全气囊或其他炸药驱动的安全装置)中用作粘结剂或核心组件。金属颗粒提供的燃料潜力是液体和气体燃料的几倍。含能聚合物和金属纳米颗粒都将成为新型含能材料的关键促进剂。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含能聚合物生产工艺的开发和放大。铝、硼和镁等感兴趣的金属纳米颗粒迅速被氧化层覆盖，降低了它们的燃料价值和保质期。如果缩小金属颗粒尺寸以提高其反应性的想法被推向极限，人们可能会想到合成一种杂化化合物，其中金属原子直接结合在聚合物的主干上。这项研究的目的是开发创新的工艺和材料，使聚合物在含能材料领域得到更多的使用。作为更近期的目标，将考虑合成和开发新型含能聚合物、金属纳米颗粒上的聚合物钝化涂层和金属杂化含能聚合物。这项拟议的研究是对聚合物技术领域面临当代挑战的创新需求的回答。更智能和可回收的安全气囊、基于金属纳米粉末的超高速推进系统、用于微型卫星的先进推进器、环境友好型高密度炸药都是潜在应用的例子。这些研究提供了增加我们关于高能聚合物反应工程、大分子释放化学能以及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.