Antistatic Modification of Lead Styphnate and Lead Azide for Surfactant Applications

Abstract Lead styphnate (LS) and lead azide (LA) must be considered vulnerable to accumulation and discharge of static charge under all conditions. To reduce the risk aroused by static initination hazard in the processing and handling of LS and LA, antistatic modifations of LS and LA are necessary. In this paper, four surfactants were applied to improve the antistatic abilities of lead styphnate and lead azide. The results showed that lauryl dimethylamine betaine (BS‐12) is significantly able to reduce the electrostatic accumulation of LS and LA. In addition, possible correlations of electrostatic accumulation with assumption and approximation could be drawn from the surfactant surface concentration. The electrostatic sensitivities, the 5 s delay explosion temperatures, and the thermal decomposition profiles of the compounds were measured. Selected products were additionally investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). For LS the performance of the products with additives was less affected, whereas for LA the sensitivity of the products in the presence of surfactants was distinctly reduced. The surfactants which are preferably compatible with LS and LA do not affect their thermal stability.