The Environmentally Friendly High-Energy Oxidizers for Solid Rocket Propellants

Ammonium perchlorate (AP) is the most commonly used oxidizers in solid rocket propellants. Although AP possesses high oxygen balance, high density, high thermal stability, and good compatibility, it also exhibits biological toxicity. What’s more, the combustion of AP releases hydrochloric acid, which not only causes ozone layer depletion and acid rain, but also generates smoke trail and results in tactical disadvantage. Plenty of work has been carried out to develop environmentally friendly substitutions for AP. However, applications of these candidates are still restricted due to some critical limitations. In this chapter, we mainly reviewed several green oxidizers which could potentially replace AP in solid rocket propellants. The preparation, modification, properties, and applications of these environmentally friendly oxidizers are discussed. Further research and development of new oxidizers are still needed in future to find green oxidizer products.