Crystal and Molecular Structure of Triethanol-Ammonium Nitrate

摘要

The liquid propellant used in the 155-mm regenerative liquid propellant gun isXM46 which is a solution of 60% hydroxyl ammonium nitrate (HAN), 20% triethanolammonium nitrate (TEAN), and 20% water. This material exhibits rather unusual liquid properties that have been attributed to its being a 'molten eutectic' of fused salts rather than a normal aqueous solution of two different nitrate salts. A hydrogen-bonded liquid structure for eutectic LP1946 was proposed previously based on the known structures of neat HAN and water and a best-guess estimate of the TEAN structure. To verify this estimate, the molecular structure of neat TEAN was recently determined. This investigation revealed TEAN has very unusual and interesting bifurcated intermolecular and trifurcated intramolecular hydrogen bonding configurations within the crystal. If these hydrogen bonding configurations are retained in aqueous solution, they could be responsible in some part to the observed unusual liquid properties of liquid propellant XM46. Crystal structure, X-ray diffraction, Molecular structure, TEAN, Triethanolammonium nitrate.