Metastable Intermolecular Composites (MIC) Primers for Small Caliber Cartridges and Cartridge Actuated Devices

摘要

The purpose of this demonstration was to evaluate the performance of metastable intermolecular composite (MIC) primers with compositions formulated from commercially available lead-free nanoscale powders. For these tests, the MIC composition was substituted for the lead styphnate-based primer composition currently used in conventional small caliber percussion primers. Small caliber percussion primers are used by the Army in small caliber ammunition and by the Navy in several CAD/PAD applications. The major objective of the program was to demonstrate that the performance of the MIC primers was equivalent to that of the lead styphnate primers in several Army and Navy applications. These performance objectives were met in that all MIC primers tested were found to meet all applicable military specifications. For Army small arms applications, the MIC primer was slightly slower than its lead styphnate counterpart but still within specifications.