Production of desensitized, ultrafine PETN powder

Pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) is a widely studied high explosive (HE), most commonly used in detonator applications. In this work, we use a spray drying technique to manufacture a new “nano-powder” morphology of PETN. The spray dried PETN is several orders of magnitude smaller in particle size than traditionally prepared PETN powders. The spray dried PETN has a mostly spherical and smooth morphology, while traditional crystalline PETN typically has sharp edges and crystal facets. Small-scale sensitivity tests including drop-weight impact, friction, and electrostatic discharge (ESD) indicate the spray dried PETN is less sensitive than traditionally used forms of PETN powders. We also observed no changes in chemical properties (melt temperature and onset of decomposition) after spray drying, and the material remains in the tetragonal, crystalline phase. [Display omitted] •Spray drying used as a novel processing method for PETN.•Spray Drying PETN forms a novel ultrafine particle size distribution and morphology.•PETN does not form an undesirable polymorph from spray drying.•The spray dried morphology of PETN results in reduction of small-scale sensitivity.