Ti3C2 MXene: A reactive combustion catalyst for efficient burning rate control of ammonium perchlorate based solid propellant

Achieving higher energy storage and controllable energy release processes is the major research goal in solid propellants. Combustion catalysts are applied to modify the energy release behavior of solid propellants but at the expense of lowering the total energy density of the propellants owing to their non-energetic feature. Here, with ammonium perchlorate (AP) based propellant as proof-of-concept material, we demonstrate a reactive combustion catalyst strategy based on the clever use of the novel structure of Ti3C2 MXene, including appropriate reactivity, high energy storage, and large specific surface area. It is found that the Ti3C2 MXene could first react with AP as fuel, releasing large amount of heat and in-situ generating TiOx/C nanosheets. The resulting TiOx/C nanosheets can further catalyze the thermal decomposition of AP by accelerating both electron and proton transfer during AP decomposition. As expected, the Ti3C2 MXene not only improves the pyrolysis reaction kinetics of AP based composites, but also increases the energy output of the propellants. The development of reactive catalysts with excellent catalytic activity and increased energy release provides a new strategy for the design of solid propellants.