Massive Preparation of Reduced-Sensitivity Nano CL-20 and Its Characterization

Nano 2,4,6,8,10,12-hexanitro-2,4,6,8,10,12-hexaazaisowurtzitane (CL-20) was produced massively by ball milling. One thousand grams of the raw CL-20 were used per batch. The product was characterized using laser granularity measurement, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The results show that the pulverized particles were pseudo-spheres with an average particle size (d(50)) of 200 nm, and the thermal decomposition peak temperature of the nano CL-20 was 239.61 degrees C lower than that of the micrometer-sized CL-20 at a heating rate of 15 degrees C.min(-1). Furthermore, compared with the raw CL-20, the impact and friction sensitivities of the nano CL-20 were considerably reduced by 116.2 and 22%, respectively, indicating the great improvement in safety of CL-20.