Ti₃C₂T_x-Enhanced Three Dimensionally Macropore CuO/Co₃O₄ Heteronetwork as a High Efficiency Catalyst for the Thermal...

Currently, energetic materials usually accelerate the thermal decomposition process and enhance the combustion efficiency by incorporating high-efficiency catalysts. However, constructing catalytic materials with high specific surface area, electrical conductivity, and mass transfer efficiency has always been a difficult problem. In this work, 3DM CuO/Co₃O₄ was synthesized via a template-calcination method. Subsequently, 3DM CuO/Co₃O₄ was combined with Ti₃C₂T_x by electrostatic assembly to obtain a 3DM CuO/CO₃O₄-Ti₃C₂T_x composite. Characterization revealed that the composite exhibits a higher specific surface area (70.15 m²/g), enhanced electrical conductivity, and obvious catalytic effects in the thermal decomposition and combustion processes of typical energetic materials such as TKX-50 and ammonium perchlorate (AP). Specifically, 3DM CuO/CO₃O₄-Ti₃C₂T_x can reduce the thermal decomposition peak temperature of TKX-50 by 32.4 °C, advance the high-temperature decomposition peak of AP by 72.7 °C, and significantly increase the heat release. Moreover, the composite can increase the flame combustion duration and intensify the flame for TKX-50 and AP. Possible catalytic mechanisms were proposed based on LAMMPS, Materials Studio adsorption simulations, and TG-MS-IR coupled analysis. 3DM CuO/CO₃O₄-Ti₃C₂T_x can accelerate the H⁺ transfer and redox processes by adsorbing the ions in TKK-50 and AP, thereby speeding up the overall thermal decomposition process. Finally, 3DM composite materials were incorporated into TKX-50/AP/HTPB propellant strands, resulting in a remarkable enhancement in burning rate. This study provides theoretical insights for the future development of high-performance catalytic materials in the field of energetic materials.