THREE-DIMENSIONAL IGNITION AND GROWTH REACTIVE FLOW MODELING OF PRISM FAILURE TESTS ON PBX 9502

The Ignition and Growth reactive flow model for shock initiation and detonation of solid explosives based on triaminotirnitrobenzene (TATB) is applied to three-dimensional detonation wave propagation. The most comprehensive set of three-dimensional detonation wave propagation data is that measured using the trapezoidal prism test. In this test, a PBX 9501 (95% HMX, 2.5% Estane, and 2.5% BDNPA/F) line detonator initiates a detonation wave along the trapezoidal face of a PBX 9502 (95% TATB and 5% Kel-F binder) prism. The failure thickness, which has been shown experimentally to be roughly half of the failure diameter of a long cylindrical charge, is measured after 50 mm of detonation wave propagation by impact with an aluminum witness plate. The effects of confinement impedance on the PBX 9502 failure thickness have been measured using air (unconfined), water, PMMA, magnesium, aluminum, lead, and copper placed in contact with the rectangular faces of the prism parallel to the direction of detonation propagation. These prism test results are modeled using the two-dimensional PBX 9502 Ignition and Growth model parameters determined by calculating failure diameter and tested on recent corner turning experiments. Good agreement between experimentally measured and calculated prism failure thicknesses for unconfined and confined PBX 9502more » is reported.« less