Low-Cost Processing of Aluminum-Based Nanothermites

The proposed Phase I SBIR work is focused on development and testing of a continuous process for mixing of binary nanopowders in a micro-mixer system. The main focus will be on safe mixing of aluminum and bismuth trioxide or iron oxide nanopowders in water for their application as percussion primers or components of low energy initiators. The effectiveness of mixing in the continuous micro-mixer will be evaluated by testing the resulting mixture using impact sensitivity devices and the measurement of released energy. The effectiveness of the proposed micromixer will be also tested using non aqueous liquid system. The R&D work will be conducted using both commercially available and inexpensive aluminum nanopowders formed using proprietary IMP process. This new mixing process will be integrated with a drying device in order to effectively and safely remove water from the resulting mixture.