Analysis Of Thermite Residues From The Agent Defeat Penetrator Payload

LT Brian Ocampo, USN

A custom thermite blend is planned for the proposed Agent Defeat Penetrator (ADP) warheads that can neutralize chemical and biological threats due to the high fireball temperatures achieved. In this thesis, we analyze the residues from burn tests and explosive shots of the Cobalt Thermite Power (CTP) fill for the warhead performed at Lawrence Livermore. A similar iron oxide based system is used as a control. Our goal is to further understand the exothermic reaction, the role of various CTP components in the burn, and ultimately implement an optimized CTP into the final warhead design. We performed electron microscopy, x-ray diffraction, and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy imaging to examine the reacted powders from a wide range of tests. We found the primary residue to be heterogeneous with a cobalt nickel crystalline core and cobalt aluminum oxide outer layer.

Point of Contact:

Advisor: Prof. Joe Hooper

Added:

Jul 01, 2016

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