Automatic Code and Data Migration in a Networked Computer Environment

There is a need to replace explosives, such as nitroglycerine, with more thermally stable materials for military and commercial applications. BTTN (1,2,4-butanetrinitrate) meets this need by offering a ten-fold increase in stability. Unfortunately, BTTN isprepared from an expensive material (1,2,4-butanetriol; BT), which currently costs $30-40/lb (compared to $0.50/lb for the glycerine, the precursor for nitroglycerine). For this reason, the Navy is interested in more cost-effective methods of preparing BT.This Phase I effort proposes a two-step, one-pot procedure for preparing BT that is based on well-precedented literature procedures. It is anticipated that this procedure will reduce material costs of preparing a pound of BT to less than $5. The proposedsynthesis will be demonstrated in Phase I and scaled up to 30- to 100-gal reactors during the Option Period. The development of a more economically and commercially viable process for the preparation of 1,2,4-butanetriol (BT) would make 1,2,4-butanetrinitrate (BTTN) more affordable for military and commercial use as a stable replacement for nitroglycerine.