Dry Synthesis of Alpha Aluminum Hydride

The use of alane in new propellants is projected to yield greater than 10% gain of specific impulse (Isp) over the state of the art solid propellants. This would translate into a 30% increase in range for a single stage tactical missile, a 4,400 lb (10%) payload increase for the Titan Solid Rocket Motor (SRM), or a 1,100 lb (20%) payload increase for the IUS (space shuttle) upper stage. Commercially available materials, however, do not possess adequate stability and compatibility with solid propellant ingredients to allow development of practical propellants, due to low thermal stability and impurities. This proposal will investigate a scalable, dry synthesis approach to producing pure alpha alane wihtout the use of solvents. The approach is based on recent advances int he production of alanes for hydrogen storage, and utilizes catalyst materials and high pressure and temperature to synthesize the alane powders. Additionally, a precision nano-encapsulation technique will be used to stabalize the alane particles to provide long term stability in contact with AN and AP and other proellant ingredients.