Study on the State of Internal Stress and Strain of TATB-based Polymer Bonded Explosive Using Strain Markers and Cone-Beam Computed Tomography

Precise measurement of the inner structural strain of polymer bonded explosive (PBXs) granules during compression molding is highly desirable in order to investigate the inner stress distribution field and its underlying generation mechanism, with the aim of improving the stress distribution uniformity. In this contribution, TATB-based (1,3,5-triamino-2,4,6-trinitrobenzene) PBX granules were formulated and the stress-strain state of the PBX granules during the warm molding process was analyzed. Strain markers were implanted at different locations and the deformation characteristics and regularity of the embedded spherical strain markers were obtained by X-ray micro-tomography. Thus the local strain states at different locations could be obtained, and the local stress state could be deduced. The results showed that axisymmetric deformation occurred in all of the strain markers, where the flat strain ellipsoids were mainly compressed uni-axially. In the central region, the stress was mainly in an axial direction, and the shear force was small. Not only axial stresses, but also large shear stresses in the surrounding region of the cylindrical grains were present. The stress gradient in the central region was greater than that in the surrounding region. The stress was greater in the surrounding region because this region was squeezed by the mold. The maximum strain degree was 44.8% larger than the minimum strain degree. The local stress increment in each region was quantified. The stress increments of the three axes were in the range 14.2-19.5 MPa. This study examined the feasibility of evaluating the inner stress–strain state of PBX granules in a quantitative manner, which is significant in determining the inner strain and stress distribution in PBX granules during the molding process.