Hexogen Coating Kinetics with Polyurethane-Based Hydroxyl-Terminated Polybutadiene (HTPB) Using Infrared Spectroscopy

The kinetics of hexogen coating with polyurethane-based hydroxyl-terminated polybutadiene (HTPB) using infrared spectrometry was investigated. The kinetics model was evaluated through reaction steps: (1) hydroxyl and isocyanate to produce urethane, (2) urethane and isocyanate to produce allophanate, and (3) nitro and isocyanate to produce diazene oxide and carbon dioxide. HTPB, ethyl acetate, TDI (toluene diisocyanate), and hexogen were mixed for 60 min at 40 °C. The sample was withdrawn and analyzed with infrared spectroscopy every ten minutes at reference wavelengths of 2270 (the specific absorption for isocyanate groups) and 1768 cm^-1 (the specific absorption for N=N groups). The solvent was vaporized; then, the coated hexogen was cured in the oven for 7 days at 60 °C. The effect of temperature on the coating kinetics was studied by adjusting the reaction temperature at 40, 50, and 60 °C. This procedure was repeated with IPDI (isophorone diisocyanate) as a curing agent. The reaction rate constant, k₃, was calculated from an independent graphic based on increasing diazene oxide concentration every ten minutes. The reaction rate constants, k₁ and k₂, were numerically calculated using the Newton-Raphson and Runge-Kutta methods based on decreasing isocyanate concentrations. The activation energy of those steps was 1178, 1021, and 912 kJ mole^-1. The reaction rate of hexogen coating with IPDI was slightly faster than with TDI.