Combustion of double-base propellants of various compositions containing ammonium nitrate.

The combustion of various propellants containing ammonium nitrate (AN) is studied. It is shown that the effect of AN on the burning rate depends on the heat of combustion of the starting propellant, the amount of AN, and the pressure at which combustion occurs. Thus, AN slightly increases the burning rate of low-calorific value propellants and significantly reduces that of high calorific value formulations. It is shown that combined catalysts can considerably increase (by a factor of up to ≈6 at a pressure of 2-4 MPa) the burning rate of propellants containing 50-70% of AN, and reduce the pressure dependence of the burning rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]