High-energy Al@CuO thermite fabricated by core–shell route: evaluation of aluminum particle size effect, thermal behavior, and safety parameters
摘要
This research presents a wet-chemical synthesis approach for fabricating Al@CuO composites with a distinct core–shell architecture and structure and investigating the effect of Al particle size on thermal behavior and properties of Al@CuO thermites prepared by core–shell method. The microstructural characteristics and elemental distribution at the Al@CuO interface were examined using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy. Thermochemical properties of the synthesized composites were characterized by differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis, while the results revealed that thermal decomposition temperatures of Al@CuO composites were about 595.4 °C for Al(5 µm)@CuO, 603.4 °C for Al(10 µm)@CuO, and 619.8 °C for Al(17 µm)@CuO. The thermokinetic investigations indicated that the activation energies for decomposition were approximately 398.5 kJ mol−1 for Al(5 µm)@CuO, 403.3 kJ mol−1 for Al(10 µm)@CuO, and 443.6 kJ mol−1 for Al(17 µm)@CuO. Meanwhile, our findings showed that thermal safety of the Al@CuO composites were increased by enhancing the size of aluminum fuel particles in the thermites.