Megabar Explosives Corporation

Megabar Corporation

M Taylor Abegg

John A Peterson

Harvey A Jessop

Ronald F McCormick

Jay W Butler

Ormond F Lavery

By Ormond Lavery, Personal Representative

Ormand F Lavery

Harvey A Jessop, Deceased

Essentially anhydrous energetic compositions, including explosives, propellants, flares, and gas generators, are initially formed at process temperatures above the solidification temperature of contained oxidizer salts as stable, melt-in-fuel emulsions having a continuous fuel phase and a discontinuous molten oxidizer phase. Surfactants are employed which cause the compositions to retain general fuel phase continuity and oxidizer phase discontinuity upon solidification. The final product is a firm or solid emulsion generally characterized by an intimate dispersion of discrete solid oxidizer cells in a fuel continuum, the product having excellent storage stability and water resistance.

Microcellular composite energetic materials and method for making same

A new arrangement of matter is developed which can be formulated to be a high explosive, a propellant or a gas generator. The new arrangement of matter in its explosive embodiment is known as a eutectic microknit explosive (EMCX) in which an essentially anhydrous eutectic mixture of ammonium nitrate, soluble explosive, and other oxidizing salts is mixed with surfactants and organic fuels while the eutectic mixture is molten, and a microcrystalline property is created which imparts a hard, machinable characteristic to the arrangement of matter. The invention includes three processes for making MCX compositions; (1) dissolving surfactants, crystal-habit modifiers, thickeners or combinations into the molten eutectic mixture in a manner which permits supercooling with subsequent solidification; (2) forming an unstable oil-continuous emulsion as a preliminary step, followed by a controlled disruption of the oil-phase continuum which causes the composition to solidify after supercooling, and (3) retarding crystal nucleation in salt-continuous emulsions by introducing surfactants, thickeners, crystal-habit modifiers or combinations, along with immiscible fuels, resulting in supercooling and subsequent solidification to a hard composition.

Eutectic microknit composite explosives and processes for making same

A new arrangement of matter is developed which can be formulated to be a high explosive, a propellant or a gas generator. The new arrangement of matter in its explosive embodiment is known as a microknit composite explosive (MCX) in which an essentially anhydrous mixture of inorganic salts, surfactants and organic fuels is prepared while the oxidizer is molten, and a microcrystalline property is created which imparts a hard, machinable characteristic to the arrangement of matter. The invention includes three processes for making MCX compositions: (1) dissolving surfactants, crystal-habit modifiers, thickeners or combinations into the molten oxidizer in a manner which permits supercooling with subsequent solidification; (2) forming an unstable oil-continuous emulsion as a preliminary step, followed by a controlled disruption of the oil-phase continuum which causes the composition to solidify after supercooling, and (3) retarding crystal nucleation in salt-continuous emulsions by introducing surfactants, thickeners, crystal-habit modifiers or combinations, along with immiscible fuels, resulting in supercooling and subsequent solidification to a hard composition.

Microknit composite explosives and processes for making same

A new arrangement of matter is developed which can be formulated to be a high explosive, a propellant or a gas generator. The new arrangement of matter in its explosive embodiment is known as a microknit composite explosive (MCX) in which an essentially anhydrous mixture of perchlorate based oxidizer salts, surfactants and organic fuels is prepared while the oxidizer is molten, and a microcrystalline property is created which imparts a hard, machinable characteristic to the arrangement of matter. The invention includes three processes for making MCX compositions: (1) dissolving surfactants, crystal-habit modifiers, thickeners or combinations into the molten oxidizer in a manner which permits supercooling with subsequent solidification; (2) forming an unstable oil-continuous emulsion as a preliminary step, followed by a controlled disruption of the oil-phase continuum which causes the composition to solidify after supercooling, and (3) retarding crystal nucleation in salt-continuous emulsions by introducing surfactants, thickeners, crystal-habit modifiers or combinations, along with immiscible fuels, resulting in supercooling and subsequent solidification to a hard composition.

Perchlorate based microknit composite explosives and processes for

A soft composite explosive composition is made by forming an oil-continuous, melt-in-fuel emulsion in which the discontinuous phase is comprised of ammonium nitrate and other ingredients which together form a eutectic mixture. The continuous phase includes a combination of fuels and emulsifiers constituting less than 2.5% by weight of the formulation. Soluble compounds such as self-explosive compounds or compounds which can be converted to explosive compounds in situ may be added directly to the discontinuous phase along with one or more oxidizer salts.

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Salt Lake City, UT, United States of America

M Taylor Abegg