Synthesis and Safety Properties of New Explosive Coordination Compounds

The present paper details the synthesis of new explosive complexes of the DDT type and the investigation of their sensitiveness to friction and impact. Fourteen new compounds, specifically nitrate and perchlorate complexes of various transition block metals with 5-(2,4,6-trinitrophenylamino)tetrazole, commonly called picrylaminotetrazole (PAT), were synthesised. The nitrate complexes were obtained in yields varying between 8.1% and 75.1%, whereas the perchlorate complexes had yields between 24.9% and 67.3%, with yields typically near the upper bound of the given ranges for both classes of complexes and the low yields obtained for [Co(PAT)3](NO3)3 and [Cd(PAT)3](ClO4)3 being the exception rather than the rule. The structures of these compounds were unambiguously established via XRF and IR spectroscopy, as well as via elemental analysis. Detailed analyses of the safety properties of these new materials were performed in terms of their sensitiveness to friction and impact. In general, the obtained compounds present relatively low sensitivity to mechanical stimuli, like friction and impact, with the nitrate complexes of Ni and Zn exhibiting high sensitivity to impact (1-2 Nm). The rest of the investigated compounds show low sensitivity to mechanical stimuli, comparable to classical blasting materials like PETN, RDX or HMX. It should be noted that, in general, the nitrates were more sensitive to mechanical stimuli than their perchlorate analogues.