Thermal decomposition of HTPB/AP and HTPB/HMX mixtures with low content of oxidizer

In this paper, hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB)/ammonium perchlorate (AP) and HTPB/cyclotetramethylene tetranitramine (HMX) mixtures with low content of oxidizer were prepared, and the thermal decomposition process of these mixtures was investigated with TG-FTIR and Raman spectrum. The experimental results indicated that during the thermal decomposition process under an inert atmosphere, HTPB and the two oxidizers could both decompose into gaseous products completely, while the mixture of HTPB and the two oxidizers produced some solid residue with carbon as the main ingredient; unlike the thermal decomposition of HTPB under argon atmosphere, HTPB cannot decompose completely under air or oxygen atmosphere, and the more the concentration of oxygen, the more the solid residue produced. Decreasing the content of oxidizer reacting with HTPB may improve the combustion performance of fuel-rich propellants by increasing the combustion temperature and the percentage of gaseous products. The results of this paper can provide the useful information for improving the combustion performance of fuel-rich propellants.