1, 2, 3-Triazole-Linked Polymers as Novel Binders for High-Energy Explosives and Propellants

Date of Award

2008

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Natural Sciences

First Advisor

Sherman, Suzanne

Keywords

Polymer Chemistry, Propellants, Mechanical Properties of Polymers

Area of Concentration

Chemistry

Abstract

Triazole-crosslinked polymers are proposed as novel binders for high-energy explosive and propellant materials. Through work done at the University of Florida Center for Heterocyclic Chemistry and Butler Polymer Research Laboratory, under the sponsorship of Alan Katritzky and Randolph Duran, twenty-four polymers were synthesized and analyzed. "Click" chemistry is used as the basis for the synthesis of the triazole-polymers, which are made with diazide and diacetylene endcapped monomers. The polymerization takes place over a period 1-4 days at 55�C. Reaction completion was determined by 1H NMR spectroscopy. Additionally, samples were taken from the reactions and analyzed by gel permeation chromatography every two days. Mechanical testing was performed on the polymers in order to characterize the viscoelastic properties of each. The structural features of the chain lengths between the reactive functional groups, and the molar ratios of the monomers determined the mechanical properties of the resulting polymers. The most successful polymers, DG1, DG2(I), DG2(II), DG2(V), and DG4(III), had favorable mechanical properties and high degrees of polymerization. In some polymerization reactions, fillers were added to observe the effect these would have on polymerization. The fillers, aluminum powder and triethyl o-acetyl citrate, were used to examine the ability of the polymers to retain functionality with explosive powder and plasticizer. The fillers were found to have no effect on the elasticity or polymerization of the resulting polymers.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS