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Effect of Complex Metal Hydrides on the Elimination of Hydrochloric Acid Exhaust Products from High‐Performance Composite Solid Propellants: A Theoretical Analysis
Author(s) -
Chalghoum Fateh,
Trache Djalal,
Maggi Filippo,
Benziane Mokhtar
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
propellants, explosives, pyrotechnics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.56
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1521-4087
pISSN - 0721-3115
DOI - 10.1002/prep.201900408
Subject(s) - propellant , ammonium perchlorate , specific impulse , combustion , hydrochloric acid , composite number , adiabatic process , metal , solid fuel rocket , chemistry , inorganic chemistry , deflagration , materials science , aluminium , chemical engineering , waste management , composite material , detonation , organic chemistry , thermodynamics , engineering , physics , explosive material
Ammonium perchlorate (AP)‐based solid rocket propellants generate hydrochloric acid (HCl) as an exhaust product during combustion. This latter displays numerous environmental problems such as the depletion of the ozone layer and the increase of the concentration of acid rains. This paper offers a theoretical analysis concerning the employment of metal hydrides as efficient additives to mitigate some of the negative effects of HCl on the environment during the combustion of AP‐based composite propellants. Nine complex metal hydrides, expected to generate desirable performance gains, are selected to assess their scavenging effect on the HCl during propellant combustion. Based on NASA Lewis Code, Chemical Equilibrium with Application (CEA), comparative analysis of the theoretical performance of specific impulse, adiabatic flame temperatures, condensed combustion products as well as the exhaust gaseous species has been carried out. This study reveals that complex metal hydrides‐based propellants exhibited better performance than those containing simple metal hydrides, showing a synergetic effect of high specific impulse and low environmental impact. It is consequently anticipated that a good choice of metal hydride can provide clean/green propellant formulations that can satisfy the current environmental requirements with better performance than current aluminum propellants.