Modified iron oxide nanoparticles as burn rate enhancer in composite solid propellants

摘要

The composite solid propellants (CSPs) are the main chemical propulsive force behind missiles and rockets. These propellants consist of pre-polymer (binder), aluminium as fuel and oxidizer with Ammonium perchiorate (AP) as a major oxidant. The burn rate modifier (BRM) is elementary requirement of the AP based composite solid propellants to achieve higher burning rates. The metal oxide nanoparticles are known to act as catalyst in the propellant composition and are the key to enhance the burn rate. Herein, the iron oxide nanoparticles (gamma-Fe2O3) were synthesized without and with capping agent (coconut oil) before thoroughly characterized for their phase purity. The results clearly show significant change in burn rate for modified gamma-Fe2O3 nanoparticles when compared to the standard bulk material for similar propellant composition.