Structurally modified RDX - A DFT study

RDX is a nitramine type explosive which is widely employed in military and industrial applications. A hot topic in military area is lowering the sensitivity of explosives. Along this direction, one approach, which is still being applied, is to use coatings or additives for explosives, as in the example of i-RDX (reduced sensitivity RDX). Another attitude would be to make some slight molecular level chemical modifications in the explosive structure that cause a diminished sensitivity without substantial loss in explosive impact. RDX has three nitro groups. We assumed that by the conversion of these nitro groups to nitroso and amino groups, it might be possible to lower the sensitivity somewhat. We have correlated the bond dissociation energies with impact sensitivity. Additionally, the ballistic properties, i.e. detonation velocity (D), and detonation pressure (P) have been examined by using Kamlet-Jacobs equations. We have shown that the above mentioned molecular modifications are a successful way of lowering the sensitivity of RDX.