Detonation Blast Pressures of TNT and C4 at -100 degrees C

摘要

One-lb charges of TNT and C4 were detonated at core temperatures of 30 deg C and -100 deg C, and incident pressure and impulse were compared to determine the effect of cooling on energy release from detonation of the explosive materials. LN2 was used to cool 1-lb (0.45-kg) charges inside two concentric, insulated containers before detonation. Pressure measurements were taken along orthogonal axes 4, 6, 10 and 20 ft from the blast origin. There were no significant statistical differences in incident pressures between shots at ambient temperature and at -100 deg C, but incident impulse decreased an average of 9.5% for both TNT and C4 at -100 deg C. The effect on incident impulse decreased with distance from the blast origin, and was too small to mitigate structural damage and injury to personnel. In principle, greater decrease is to be expected at LN2 or liquid helium temperatures, but these will likely be impractical to use in EOD applications.