Polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA)is an optically transparent thermoplastic with favorable processing conditions.In this study,a series of plastic scintillators are prepared via thermal polymerization,and the impact of PMM...Polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA)is an optically transparent thermoplastic with favorable processing conditions.In this study,a series of plastic scintillators are prepared via thermal polymerization,and the impact of PMMA content on their transparency and pulse shape discrimination(PSD)ability is investigated.The fabricated samples,comprising a polystyrene(PS)-PMMA matrix,30.0 wt%2,5-diphenyloxazole(PPO),and 0.2 wt%9,10-diphenylanthracene(DPA),exhibit high transparency with transmissivity ranging from 70.0 to 90.0%(above 415.0 nm)and demonstrate excellent n/γdiscrimination capability.Transparency increased with increasing PMMA content across the entire visible light spectrum.However,the PSD performance gradually deteriorated when the aromatic matrix was replaced with PMMA.The scintillator containing 20.0 wt%PMMA demonstrated the best stability concerning PSD properties and relative light yields.展开更多
The highly ordered silver-coated colloidal crystals arrays and macroporous silver films were derived through an electrostatics-induced adsorption effect using polystyrene(PS) as templates. Carboxyl-modified PS microsp...The highly ordered silver-coated colloidal crystals arrays and macroporous silver films were derived through an electrostatics-induced adsorption effect using polystyrene(PS) as templates. Carboxyl-modified PS microspheres were prepared by emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization using methacrylic acid(MAA) as the functional monomer. PS microspheres were self-assembled into close packing colloidal crystals of facecentered cubic arrays to the substrate with vertical deposition method. These colloidal crystals were modified using dopamine(DA) to form poly-dopamine(PDA) during its oxidative polymerization. Through electrostatic interaction, the silver nanoparticles were deposited and adsorbed onto the surfaces of colloidal crystals templates by exposing [Ag(NH_3)_2]^+solution to infrared irradiation. Removal of the polymeric template by etching with methylbenzene solvent resulted in 3D ordered macroporous silver films. The structural and properties of the ordered silver-coated arrays and macroporous silver films were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD), UV-vis spectroscopy and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy(SERS). The results indicate that the prepared silver-coated arrays and macroporous silver films possess the features of ordered multilayer arrangement, uniformity and repeatability as well as an ideal SERS effect.展开更多
Arrays of noble metal nanoparticles show potential applications in （bio-）sensing, optical storage, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, and waveguides. For all such potential devices, controlling the size, morphology, and...Arrays of noble metal nanoparticles show potential applications in （bio-）sensing, optical storage, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, and waveguides. For all such potential devices, controlling the size, morphology, and interparticle spacing of the nanoparticles is very important. Here, we combine seed-mediated growth with nanosphere lithography to study the controllable growth of gold nanoparticles （Au NPs）, in which the self-assembly monolayer of polystyrene （PS） on a silicon surface is used to guide the modification of allaunesilanes and the subsequent adsorption of gold seeds; seed-mediated growth is applied to controlling the morphology and size of Au NPs. The size of adsorption region （determining the number of adsorbed gold seeds） is controlled by etching PS microspheres with oxygen plasma or annealing PS microspheres at the glass transition temperature. The size and morphology of the Au NPs are controlled by changing growth conditions. In such a way, we have achieved the dual control of the obtained Au NPs. Preliminary results show that this strategy holds a great promise. This approach can also be extended to a wide range of materials and substrates.展开更多
Microspheres coated with a perfectly conductive surface have many advantages in the applications of biosensors and micro-electromechanical systems. Polystyrene microspheres with the diameter of 10 μm were coated with...Microspheres coated with a perfectly conductive surface have many advantages in the applications of biosensors and micro-electromechanical systems. Polystyrene microspheres with the diameter of 10 μm were coated with a 50 nmthick gold layer using an electroless gold plating approach. Dielectrophoresis （DEP） for bare microspheres and shelled microspheres was theoretically analysed and the real part of the Clausius Mossotti factor was calculated for the two kinds of microspheres. The experiments on the dielectrophoretic characterisation of the uncoated polystyrene microspheres and gold coated polystyrene microspheres （GCPMs） were carried out. Experimental results showed that the gold coated polystyrene microspheres were only acted by a positive dielectrophoretic force when the frequency was below 40M Hz, while the uncoated polystyrene microspheres were governed by a negative dielectrophoretic force in this frequency range. The gold coated polystyrene microspheres were exploited to form the rnicrowire automatically according to their stable dielectrophoretic and electric characterisations.展开更多
Monodisperse crosslinked polystyrene （CPS） particles were prepared through the normal emulsion polymerization method by adding crosslinker--divinylbenzene （DVB） into the reaction system after polystyrene （PS） pa...Monodisperse crosslinked polystyrene （CPS） particles were prepared through the normal emulsion polymerization method by adding crosslinker--divinylbenzene （DVB） into the reaction system after polystyrene （PS） particles grew to -80% of the final size. When the amount of crosslinker DVB added was less than 6.17 wt% based on styrene, the prepared CPS particles were spherical and uniform and the size of the CPS particles could be predicted through the normal emulsion method. The glass transition temperature （Tg） of the prepared CPS particles was higher than that of un-crosslinked PS particles and, the more crosslinker that was added, the higher the Tg of CPS Particles. The prepared CPS particles had strong resistance to organic solvents.展开更多
A shock-timing experiment plays an important role in inertial confinement fusion studies,and the timing of multiple shock waves is crucial to the performance of inertial confinement fusion ignition targets.We present ...A shock-timing experiment plays an important role in inertial confinement fusion studies,and the timing of multiple shock waves is crucial to the performance of inertial confinement fusion ignition targets.We present an experimental observation of a shock wave driven by a two-step radiation pulse in a polystyrene target.The experiment is carried out at Shen Guang III Yuan Xing(SGIIIYX)laser facility in China,and the generation and coalescence of the two shock waves,originating from each of the two radiation steps,is clearly seen with two velocity interferometers.This two-shock-wave coalescence is also simulated by the radioactive hydrodynamic code of a multi-1D program.The experimental measurements are compared with the simulations and quite good agreements are found,with relatively small discrepancies in shock timing.展开更多
To tailor properties of polymer composites are very important for their applications.Very small concentrations of nanoparticles can significantly alter their physical characteristics.In this work,molecular dynamics si...To tailor properties of polymer composites are very important for their applications.Very small concentrations of nanoparticles can significantly alter their physical characteristics.In this work,molecular dynamics simulations are performed to study the thermodynamic and structural properties of polystyrene/C60(PS/C60)composites.The calculated densities,glass transition temperatures,and coefficient of thermal expansion of the bulk PS are in agreement with the experimental data available,implying that our calculations are reasonable.We find that the glass transition temperature Tg increases accordingly with an added concentration of C60 for PS/C60 composites.However,the self-diffusion coefficient D decreases with increase of addition of C60.For the volumetric coefficients of thermal expansion(CTE)of bulk PS and PS/C60 composites,it can be seen that the CTE increases with increasing content of C60 above Tg(rubbery region).However,the CTE decreases with increasing content of C60 below Tg(glassy region).展开更多
This paper reports that the n-type organic thin-fihn transistors have been fabricated by using C60 as the active layer and polystyrene as the dielectric. The properties of insulator and the growth characteristic of C6...This paper reports that the n-type organic thin-fihn transistors have been fabricated by using C60 as the active layer and polystyrene as the dielectric. The properties of insulator and the growth characteristic of C60 film were carefully investigated. By choosing different source/drain electrodes, a device with good performance can be obtained. The highest electron field effect mobility about 1.15 cm2/（V. s） could reach when Barium was introduced as electrodes. Moreover, the C60 transistor shows a negligible ＇hysteresis effect＇ contributed to the hydroxyl-free of insulator. The result suggests that polymer dielectrics are promising in applications among n-type organic transistors.展开更多
This paper illuminates the preparation of grating-like polystyrene latex monolayer structure, which can minimize the effects of the size deviation of spheres and the defect transfer on the accuracy as calibration samp...This paper illuminates the preparation of grating-like polystyrene latex monolayer structure, which can minimize the effects of the size deviation of spheres and the defect transfer on the accuracy as calibration samples for micro-scopes. The latex films are grown on freshly cleaved mica substrates by vertical deposition method. The concentration dependence of the structure and the topography of latex films is characterized by optical microscope, ultraviolet- visible transmission spectrum and scanning probe microscope. The origination of such a grating-like structure is also discussed.展开更多
Electrospinning is a simple technique used to fabricate polymeric nano-fibrous membranes.These nano-fibers have found a wide range of valuable applications in the biomedical field.However,it has not been utilized with...Electrospinning is a simple technique used to fabricate polymeric nano-fibrous membranes.These nano-fibers have found a wide range of valuable applications in the biomedical field.However,it has not been utilized with solid high explosives yet.Herein,the electrospinning technique has been used to fabricate polystyrene(PS)/1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazinane(RDX)composite nanofibers.The governed electrospinning parameters,voltage,distance from the collector,flow rate,mandrel rotating speed,time,and solution concentration,that greatly affect the morphology of the obtained nanofibers were optimized.The fabricated PS/RDX nano-fibers were characterized using scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray diffractometer(XRD),and Fourier Transform Infrared(FTIR)spectroscopy.The impact and friction sensitivities of PS/RDX were also measured.The thermal behavior of the prepared composite and the pure materials were studied by the thermal gravimetric analysis technique(TGA).SEM results proved the fabrication of PS/RDX fibers in the nano-size via electrospinning.FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the existence of the characteristic functional groups of both PS and RDX in the composite nano-fibers.XRD sharp peaks showed the conversion of amorphous PS into crystalline shape via electrospinning and also confirmed the formation of PS/RDX composite.The PS fibers absorbed the heat and increased the onset decomposition of the pure RDX from 181.5 to 200.7℃in the case of PS/RDX fibers.Interestingly,PS/RDX nano-fibers showed the relatively low impact and friction sensitivities of 100 J and 360 N respectively.These results could introduce PS/RDX nanofibrous composite in the field of explosives detection with high levels of safety.展开更多
The irradiation stability of polystyrene (PS) was studied by 13C and 1H NMR spectra, Nuclear Overhauser Relaxation (NOE) and 13C NMR spin-lattice relaxation time (T1). The results indicate that 13C and 1H NMR chemical...The irradiation stability of polystyrene (PS) was studied by 13C and 1H NMR spectra, Nuclear Overhauser Relaxation (NOE) and 13C NMR spin-lattice relaxation time (T1). The results indicate that 13C and 1H NMR chemical shifts, NOE and T1 were almost invariant with the increase of irradiation dose. This shows that polystyrene is particularly stable within 2.5 kGy doses and the mechanism of its stability is discussed.展开更多
Proton exchange membranes(PEMs)were prepared in three steps:grafting of polystyrene onto PVDF powder using pre-irradiation graft polymerization technique,processing the grafted PVDF powder into membranes of around 50-...Proton exchange membranes(PEMs)were prepared in three steps:grafting of polystyrene onto PVDF powder using pre-irradiation graft polymerization technique,processing the grafted PVDF powder into membranes of around 50-μm thickness,and sulfonating them with cholorosulfonic acid to form poly(vinylidene fluoride)-g-poly(styrene sulfonic acid)membranes.Kinetics of the graft polymerization was studied.The existing of polystyrene side-chains in the grafted PVDF powders,and PSSA groups in PEMs,were proved by FT-IR.Properties of the PEMs,i.e.the ion exchange capacity,water uptake,proton conductivity,thermal property and oxidative stability, were characterized.Dependence of properties on the degree of grafting was investigated,too.展开更多
Propellants containing micro-aluminium particles have been shown to produce faster burn rates than conventional gun propellants.However,they are also more abrasive than conventional propellants.Nano-material propellan...Propellants containing micro-aluminium particles have been shown to produce faster burn rates than conventional gun propellants.However,they are also more abrasive than conventional propellants.Nano-material propellants have been reported to give similar benefits to micron-material propellants but without the disadvantage of increased abrasion.Tests were conducted to compare the burn rates,ignitability and wear rates of a propellant loaded with 0% aluminium,15% micro-aluminium and 15%nano-aluminium.Closed vessel tests showed a burn rate increase of 39% in the range 30-250 MPa,and 70% at low pressure(50-100MPa)for the nano-aluminium propellant compared with the baseline propellant.The micro-aluminium propellant showed only a 10%increase in the burn rate compared with the standard propellant.The ignition delay for the nano-aluminium propellant was slightly shorter than that of the baseline propellant.Substantially increased wear rates were measured for the micro-aluminium propellant.The nano-aluminium propellant showed reduced wear rates compared with the micro-aluminium propellant but these were still substantially greater than those for the baseline propellant.展开更多
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.12027813)the fund of National Innovation Center of Radiation Application of China(Nos.KFZC2020020501,KFZC2021010101).
文摘Polymethyl methacrylate(PMMA)is an optically transparent thermoplastic with favorable processing conditions.In this study,a series of plastic scintillators are prepared via thermal polymerization,and the impact of PMMA content on their transparency and pulse shape discrimination(PSD)ability is investigated.The fabricated samples,comprising a polystyrene(PS)-PMMA matrix,30.0 wt%2,5-diphenyloxazole(PPO),and 0.2 wt%9,10-diphenylanthracene(DPA),exhibit high transparency with transmissivity ranging from 70.0 to 90.0%(above 415.0 nm)and demonstrate excellent n/γdiscrimination capability.Transparency increased with increasing PMMA content across the entire visible light spectrum.However,the PSD performance gradually deteriorated when the aromatic matrix was replaced with PMMA.The scintillator containing 20.0 wt%PMMA demonstrated the best stability concerning PSD properties and relative light yields.
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 50873085 and 21375116)a project funded by the Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD)
文摘The highly ordered silver-coated colloidal crystals arrays and macroporous silver films were derived through an electrostatics-induced adsorption effect using polystyrene(PS) as templates. Carboxyl-modified PS microspheres were prepared by emulsifier-free emulsion polymerization using methacrylic acid(MAA) as the functional monomer. PS microspheres were self-assembled into close packing colloidal crystals of facecentered cubic arrays to the substrate with vertical deposition method. These colloidal crystals were modified using dopamine(DA) to form poly-dopamine(PDA) during its oxidative polymerization. Through electrostatic interaction, the silver nanoparticles were deposited and adsorbed onto the surfaces of colloidal crystals templates by exposing [Ag(NH_3)_2]^+solution to infrared irradiation. Removal of the polymeric template by etching with methylbenzene solvent resulted in 3D ordered macroporous silver films. The structural and properties of the ordered silver-coated arrays and macroporous silver films were characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction(XRD), UV-vis spectroscopy and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy(SERS). The results indicate that the prepared silver-coated arrays and macroporous silver films possess the features of ordered multilayer arrangement, uniformity and repeatability as well as an ideal SERS effect.
基金Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China （Grant No 10334060） and The State Key Development Program for Basic Research of China （Grant No 2005CB623602）.
文摘Arrays of noble metal nanoparticles show potential applications in （bio-）sensing, optical storage, surface-enhanced spectroscopy, and waveguides. For all such potential devices, controlling the size, morphology, and interparticle spacing of the nanoparticles is very important. Here, we combine seed-mediated growth with nanosphere lithography to study the controllable growth of gold nanoparticles （Au NPs）, in which the self-assembly monolayer of polystyrene （PS） on a silicon surface is used to guide the modification of allaunesilanes and the subsequent adsorption of gold seeds; seed-mediated growth is applied to controlling the morphology and size of Au NPs. The size of adsorption region （determining the number of adsorbed gold seeds） is controlled by etching PS microspheres with oxygen plasma or annealing PS microspheres at the glass transition temperature. The size and morphology of the Au NPs are controlled by changing growth conditions. In such a way, we have achieved the dual control of the obtained Au NPs. Preliminary results show that this strategy holds a great promise. This approach can also be extended to a wide range of materials and substrates.
基金Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 51075087)the State Key Laboratory of Fluid Power Transmission and Control,ZheJiang University of China (Grnat No. GZKF-201004)the China Scholarship Council(Grant No. 2009612129)
文摘Microspheres coated with a perfectly conductive surface have many advantages in the applications of biosensors and micro-electromechanical systems. Polystyrene microspheres with the diameter of 10 μm were coated with a 50 nmthick gold layer using an electroless gold plating approach. Dielectrophoresis （DEP） for bare microspheres and shelled microspheres was theoretically analysed and the real part of the Clausius Mossotti factor was calculated for the two kinds of microspheres. The experiments on the dielectrophoretic characterisation of the uncoated polystyrene microspheres and gold coated polystyrene microspheres （GCPMs） were carried out. Experimental results showed that the gold coated polystyrene microspheres were only acted by a positive dielectrophoretic force when the frequency was below 40M Hz, while the uncoated polystyrene microspheres were governed by a negative dielectrophoretic force in this frequency range. The gold coated polystyrene microspheres were exploited to form the rnicrowire automatically according to their stable dielectrophoretic and electric characterisations.
基金National Basic Research Program of China(Grant No:2006CB932601)the Scientific Research Foundation for Returned Overseas Chinese Scholar,Ministry of Education
文摘Monodisperse crosslinked polystyrene （CPS） particles were prepared through the normal emulsion polymerization method by adding crosslinker--divinylbenzene （DVB） into the reaction system after polystyrene （PS） particles grew to -80% of the final size. When the amount of crosslinker DVB added was less than 6.17 wt% based on styrene, the prepared CPS particles were spherical and uniform and the size of the CPS particles could be predicted through the normal emulsion method. The glass transition temperature （Tg） of the prepared CPS particles was higher than that of un-crosslinked PS particles and, the more crosslinker that was added, the higher the Tg of CPS Particles. The prepared CPS particles had strong resistance to organic solvents.
基金by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No 10805041Science and Technology on Plasma Physics Laboratory under Grant No 9140C6801021001.
文摘A shock-timing experiment plays an important role in inertial confinement fusion studies,and the timing of multiple shock waves is crucial to the performance of inertial confinement fusion ignition targets.We present an experimental observation of a shock wave driven by a two-step radiation pulse in a polystyrene target.The experiment is carried out at Shen Guang III Yuan Xing(SGIIIYX)laser facility in China,and the generation and coalescence of the two shock waves,originating from each of the two radiation steps,is clearly seen with two velocity interferometers.This two-shock-wave coalescence is also simulated by the radioactive hydrodynamic code of a multi-1D program.The experimental measurements are compared with the simulations and quite good agreements are found,with relatively small discrepancies in shock timing.
基金Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant No.11704329)the Scientific Research Fund of Sichuan Provincial Education Department of China(Grant No.15ZB293)+1 种基金the Pre-Research Project of Yibin University of China(Grant No.2019YY06)the Open Research Fund of Computational Physics Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province at Yibin University of China(Grant No.JSWL2014KF02).
文摘To tailor properties of polymer composites are very important for their applications.Very small concentrations of nanoparticles can significantly alter their physical characteristics.In this work,molecular dynamics simulations are performed to study the thermodynamic and structural properties of polystyrene/C60(PS/C60)composites.The calculated densities,glass transition temperatures,and coefficient of thermal expansion of the bulk PS are in agreement with the experimental data available,implying that our calculations are reasonable.We find that the glass transition temperature Tg increases accordingly with an added concentration of C60 for PS/C60 composites.However,the self-diffusion coefficient D decreases with increase of addition of C60.For the volumetric coefficients of thermal expansion(CTE)of bulk PS and PS/C60 composites,it can be seen that the CTE increases with increasing content of C60 above Tg(rubbery region).However,the CTE decreases with increasing content of C60 below Tg(glassy region).
基金supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 60676033)
文摘This paper reports that the n-type organic thin-fihn transistors have been fabricated by using C60 as the active layer and polystyrene as the dielectric. The properties of insulator and the growth characteristic of C60 film were carefully investigated. By choosing different source/drain electrodes, a device with good performance can be obtained. The highest electron field effect mobility about 1.15 cm2/（V. s） could reach when Barium was introduced as electrodes. Moreover, the C60 transistor shows a negligible ＇hysteresis effect＇ contributed to the hydroxyl-free of insulator. The result suggests that polymer dielectrics are promising in applications among n-type organic transistors.
基金supported by Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality (Grant No 0652NM028)Shanghai Leading Academic Discipline Project of China (B113)the International Research Training Group (IRTG)
文摘This paper illuminates the preparation of grating-like polystyrene latex monolayer structure, which can minimize the effects of the size deviation of spheres and the defect transfer on the accuracy as calibration samples for micro-scopes. The latex films are grown on freshly cleaved mica substrates by vertical deposition method. The concentration dependence of the structure and the topography of latex films is characterized by optical microscope, ultraviolet- visible transmission spectrum and scanning probe microscope. The origination of such a grating-like structure is also discussed.
文摘Electrospinning is a simple technique used to fabricate polymeric nano-fibrous membranes.These nano-fibers have found a wide range of valuable applications in the biomedical field.However,it has not been utilized with solid high explosives yet.Herein,the electrospinning technique has been used to fabricate polystyrene(PS)/1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazinane(RDX)composite nanofibers.The governed electrospinning parameters,voltage,distance from the collector,flow rate,mandrel rotating speed,time,and solution concentration,that greatly affect the morphology of the obtained nanofibers were optimized.The fabricated PS/RDX nano-fibers were characterized using scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray diffractometer(XRD),and Fourier Transform Infrared(FTIR)spectroscopy.The impact and friction sensitivities of PS/RDX were also measured.The thermal behavior of the prepared composite and the pure materials were studied by the thermal gravimetric analysis technique(TGA).SEM results proved the fabrication of PS/RDX fibers in the nano-size via electrospinning.FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the existence of the characteristic functional groups of both PS and RDX in the composite nano-fibers.XRD sharp peaks showed the conversion of amorphous PS into crystalline shape via electrospinning and also confirmed the formation of PS/RDX composite.The PS fibers absorbed the heat and increased the onset decomposition of the pure RDX from 181.5 to 200.7℃in the case of PS/RDX fibers.Interestingly,PS/RDX nano-fibers showed the relatively low impact and friction sensitivities of 100 J and 360 N respectively.These results could introduce PS/RDX nanofibrous composite in the field of explosives detection with high levels of safety.
基金Supported by the Doctor Foundation of Xinjiang University
文摘The irradiation stability of polystyrene (PS) was studied by 13C and 1H NMR spectra, Nuclear Overhauser Relaxation (NOE) and 13C NMR spin-lattice relaxation time (T1). The results indicate that 13C and 1H NMR chemical shifts, NOE and T1 were almost invariant with the increase of irradiation dose. This shows that polystyrene is particularly stable within 2.5 kGy doses and the mechanism of its stability is discussed.
基金Supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.10875164 and No.10805070)Knowledge Innovation Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences
文摘Proton exchange membranes(PEMs)were prepared in three steps:grafting of polystyrene onto PVDF powder using pre-irradiation graft polymerization technique,processing the grafted PVDF powder into membranes of around 50-μm thickness,and sulfonating them with cholorosulfonic acid to form poly(vinylidene fluoride)-g-poly(styrene sulfonic acid)membranes.Kinetics of the graft polymerization was studied.The existing of polystyrene side-chains in the grafted PVDF powders,and PSSA groups in PEMs,were proved by FT-IR.Properties of the PEMs,i.e.the ion exchange capacity,water uptake,proton conductivity,thermal property and oxidative stability, were characterized.Dependence of properties on the degree of grafting was investigated,too.
基金funded by the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory(Dstl)part of the UK MoD,under the Hazard Modelling and Simulation task of the UK Energetics(UK-E)programme now consumed by the Weapons Science and Technology Centre(WSTC)
文摘Propellants containing micro-aluminium particles have been shown to produce faster burn rates than conventional gun propellants.However,they are also more abrasive than conventional propellants.Nano-material propellants have been reported to give similar benefits to micron-material propellants but without the disadvantage of increased abrasion.Tests were conducted to compare the burn rates,ignitability and wear rates of a propellant loaded with 0% aluminium,15% micro-aluminium and 15%nano-aluminium.Closed vessel tests showed a burn rate increase of 39% in the range 30-250 MPa,and 70% at low pressure(50-100MPa)for the nano-aluminium propellant compared with the baseline propellant.The micro-aluminium propellant showed only a 10%increase in the burn rate compared with the standard propellant.The ignition delay for the nano-aluminium propellant was slightly shorter than that of the baseline propellant.Substantially increased wear rates were measured for the micro-aluminium propellant.The nano-aluminium propellant showed reduced wear rates compared with the micro-aluminium propellant but these were still substantially greater than those for the baseline propellant.
