Hierarchical porous frameworks: Nitrogen-doped porous carbon-based hematite as high performance catalysts for energetic materials

Owing to the need for high-energy and low sensitivity for solid propellants and weapon storage, the development of high-performance combustion catalysts is of top priority. In this study, a nitrogen-doped porous carbon (CN) material was prepared by a simply modified "salt template" method. Then, ultra-small-sized hematite nanoparticles were modified in-situ by co-precipitation to form Fe2O3/CN with hierarchical porous framework structure. These structural features endow it with a high specific surface area exceeding to 1207 m2/g. Thermal analysis showed that the exothermic decomposition peak of cyclotetramethylenetetranitramine (HMX) was reduced by 43.77 degrees C and the activation energy was reduced by 416.62 kJ center dot mol- 1 when the CN concentration was 2 mg center dot mL- 1. And a possible decomposition path was proposed using the Thermogravimetry/Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (TG/FT-IR) simultaneous technique. The catalytic activity was found to be greatly enhanced due to the coupling effect of the hematite and CN. Furthermore, the prepared Fe2O3/CN was mixed with aluminum powder to form a metastable intermolecular composites (MICs). Ignition and combustion performance studies show that the addition of Fe2O3/CN composite can increase the heat release of nano-thermite by 1286.3 J/g and extend the combustion time to 2.1 s.