EFFECTS OF DIFFERENT DECELERATION AGENTS ON THE PROPERTIES OF HYDROXYL TERMINATED POLYETHER (HTPE)-BASED COMPOSITE SOLID PROPELLANTS

Several industrial- and research types of hydroxyl-terminated polyether (HTPE) composite solid propellants containing different deceleration agents, featuring the same nominal composition, were prepared and experimentally analyzed. The energetic properties and the hazardous properties of propellants prepared were analyzed. The effects of different deceleration agents on the strand burning rate and the associated combustion flame structure of propellants were investigated and the properties mentioned above compared to that of a conventional composite propellant without deceleration agents, and the thermal decomposition of propellants were performed. It was shown that the application of different burning rate suppressant additives in the HTPE-based composite solid propellants is feasible, which can be casted in vacuum and cured safely. The HTPE solid propellants containing various deceleration agents are insensitive to impact and friction, and the heat of explosion of reference composite solid propellant ([CP] sample) is higher than those of the propellants with different deceleration agents. Moreover, the addition of deceleration agents to the propellant formulations can decrease the burning rates compared to the reference propellant without any deceleration agent. Among the composite solid propellant formulations, the pressure exponent of the propellant containing di-butyl phthalate ([DB-CP] sample) is the lowest one (0.212).