THE USE OF RECLAIMED PBX MATERIALS AS BLASTING AGENTS

ORDNANCE RECLAMATION ACTIVITIES RESULT IN A SURPLUS OF PLASTIC BONDED EXPLOSIVES (PBXS). AS CURRENTLY FORMULATED, THESE MATERIALS ARE TOO ENERGETIC FOR COMMERCIAL BLASTING APPLICATIONS. PBXS COULD BE MODIFIED THROUGH THE USE OF LOW DENSITY FILLERS TO GENERATE APPROPRIATE EXPLOSIVE CHARACTERISTICS. SUCH MATERIALS COULD REDUCE DRILLING REQUIREMENTS FOR BLASTIN PURPOSES, THUS, ACHIEVING COST SAVINGS. USERS OF BLASTING AGENTS ARE COST-DRIVEN, NOT PERFORMANCE DRIVEN, NECESSITATING A SIGNIFICANT BREAKTHROUGH IN COST AND/OR PERFORMANCE TO PENETRATE THE MARKET. TPL WILL COMBINE WITH NEW MEXICO TECH'S CENTER FOR EXPLOSIVES TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH TO ANALYTICALLY AND EXPERIMENTALLY DETERMINE THE EXPLOSIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF FILLERMODIFIED PBXS. ECONOMIC AND BLASTING STUDIES WILL BE CONDUCTED TO DEFINE PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS. TAILORED PULSE FRACTURING, A NOVEL MULTIPLE FRACTURE CREATION PROCESS, WILL BE EVALUATED FOR BLASTING PURPOSES USING THESE MATERIALS. DETONATION PRESSURE, DETONATION VELOCITY, AND HEAT OF EXPLOSION VALUES WILL BE DEVELOPED AS A FUNCTION OF FILLER-PBX FORMULATION. ECONOMIC AND PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS WILL BE ESTABLISHED. THE FEASIBILITY OF PULSE FRACTURINGWILL BE ADDRESSED. THE TPL/CETR TEAM HAS THE NECESSARY EXPLOSIVES, ROCK FRACTURING, AND FIELD ENGINEERING EXPERTISE TO SUCCESSFULLY CONDUCT THIS PROGRAM.