1. Reactive Materials in Mines and Demolitions Systems
Mark Cvetnic
Technical Director of Advanced Programs
ATK Missile Systems
4700 Nathan Lane North
Plymouth, MN
(763)
Unclassified

2. Reactive Materials in Mines
Improved lethality – reactive materials improve performance against personnel and vehicles.
“Dial-a-yield” effects – Tiered response - reactive materials in a blast weapon can tailor the blast effect to range from non-lethal (disorientation / discomfort / incapacitation) to lethal force.
Unclassified

3. Reactive Material in Demolitions
Road Cratering– smaller binary shaped charge jets can create the same hole as the current two stage demolition system (shaped charge jet for hole drilling and C-4 for enlarging hole and upheaval of debris).
Material Defeat – Shoulder fired systems that can defeat bunkers without penetrating. Increased target set and effectiveness of SLAM.
Unclassified

4. Reactive Materials (RM)
What is a Reactive Material? – Any composition that is compatible with explosives, shock initiated, and has dependable release of energy (rate and amount).
Intermetallics – SHS reactions – Metals + Al, C or B
Primary Reaction: metal + metal = alloy + heat
Secondary Reaction: alloy + oxygen = oxide + heat
Thermites – Metal + Metal Oxide
High reaction temperatures, no gas.
Metal / Halogen – Al + Teflon reaction
Key focus area of reactive fragments.
Ultra Fine Aluminum Particles – nano-energetics
Used with AP or KP to form rocket propellants.
Metal Hydrides – AlH3 and TiH4.
Use compounds with hydrogen to as energy carriers.
Unclassified

5. Control of RM Reaction Rates.
Explosive energy – high pressure short duration
Reactive A – stoichiometric mix with small particles designed to minimize total reaction time.
Reactive B – stoichiometric mix with larger particles designed to increase total reaction time from Reactive A.
Reactive C – fuel rich mix designed to maximize total reaction time.
Why control the rate of oxidation? – To tailor the peak pressure and duration of the blast wave to maximize vulnerability of target.
Unclassified

6. Generic Pressure – Impulse Curves for target
Blast wave interaction with target
Diffraction Loading – differences of pressure occurs when blast wave passes. Function of overpressure. Coupling is optimum when blast wave duration is ¼ the natural frequency of target. Light weight targets are most susceptible.
Drag Coupling – Targets damaged due to drag loading of rapid moving air. Drag load damage increases when duration (impulse) of blast increases. Harder targets more susceptible.
Unclassified

7. Bowen PI Curves for Personnel
Data shown are human tolerance predictions for a 70-kg man in a free-stream blast wave (References 1 and 2).
Gibson, Philip W., “Blast Overpressure and Survivability Calculations for Various Sizes of Explosive Charges,” United States Army Natick Research, Development and Engineering Center, Natick, Massachusetts, Report Number Natick/TR (DTIC Accession Number AD-A286212), November 1994.
White, C.S., et al., “The Biodynamics of Airblast,” Defense Nuclear Agency, Report Number DNA2738T, July 1971.
Unclassified

8. RM in Blast / Fragmentation warheads
Reactive materials, used in conjunction with variable initiation schemes, can tailor the blast / fragmentation warhead effects:
Lethal fragments patterns using reactive fragments.
Lethal blast combining the blast from the explosives and the reactive fragments.
Non-lethal blast – using the explosives and reactive fragments to create incapacitating blast wave.
Non-lethal discomfort – high temperature impulse, with low pressure blast, create discomfort zone.
Non-lethal disorientation – explosives and reactive materials to create high intensity light
ATK’s goal is a single RM blast / fragmentation warhead that can be tailored to deliver a tiered response from disorientation to discomfort to incapacitation to lethal.
Unclassified

9. Effects of RM in AP mines
Non-Lethal Blast Effects
The energy release from reactive materials can be tailored to react and emit specific bands of light that cause temporary flash blindness
The longer reaction rates of reactive materials can produce significant heat and sustained low pressures (large impulse) that can cause discomfort and disorientation
“Dial-a-yield” effects – Tiered response - reactive materials in a blast weapon can tailor the blast effect to range from non-lethal incapacitation to lethal force.
Non-Lethal
Lethal
Unclassified

10. Lethal Effects of RM in mines
RM Fragmentation Lethal Effects
Equivalent Kinetic Energy as steel fragments - Current generation ATK Thiokol reactive materials have same density as steel, thus giving RM fragmentation weapons the same fragment kinetic energy.
Additional Chemical Energy from RM event –reactive fragments can produce a large amount of chemical energy in the form of temperature, light and/or pressure.
Blast Lethal Effects
Thermobaric - reactive materials can enhance the blast wave of conventional explosives.
Reactive fragment event in test chamber
Thermobaric event in open
Unclassified

11. RM in Explosively Formed Penetrators
Improved Performance
Kinetic Energy
Multiple Penetrators
Chemical Energy
Overpressure
Temperature
Impact of Reactive EFP on concrete wall
Reactive EFP vs. Fuel Drum
Unclassified

12. Reactive Material Shaped Charge Jet
                                                                                                                                                
Flamethrower & Fuel Air Explosive – same fuel and oxidizer, different methods of delivery.
Unclassified

13. How to control energy release in a RM SCJ
Reaction rates in explosives are controlled by:
Fuel type, size, and distribution
Oxidizer type, size, and distribution
Binder
RM SCJ are dynamic and additional parameters must be examined:
Fuel size and distribution are function of liner material and process used to create jet.
Oxidizer size and distribution function of jet interaction
Fuel Choice
& SCJ Process
Jet & Oxidizer
Interaction
Unclassified

14. Range of RM SCJ tested Unclassified Slow reaction rates
Maximum Penetration
Minimal Overpressure
Minor improvement over inert SCJ
Medium reaction rates
Maintain penetration
Significant overpressure damage
Best suited for bunker defeat
Fast Reaction Rates
Minimum Penetration
Maximum Overpressure
Best suited for cratering
Unclassified

15. Thermobaric Reaction after Reactive SCJ penetrates concrete wall
RM SCJ Bunker Defeat
Improved Effects
Penetration
Overpressure
Impulse
Heat / Temperature
Thermobaric Reaction after Reactive SCJ penetrates concrete wall
Unclassified

16. Binary Road Cratering System
Shaped Charge Jet
Conical
Diameter = 7.87 inches
Explosive weight = lbs
Oxidizer
Entrainment system
Target – Concrete Slab with rebar
8 ft wide
+24 ft long
5 ½ inches thick with soil underneath.
Unclassified

17. Crater formed by binary system
Damage to Target
Crater Diameter > eight feet
Crater Depth = 52 inches
Depth of hole and upheaval of concrete demonstrates energy release of SCJ.
Potential for Road Cratering demonstrated.
Unclassified

18. Contributions to this effort
Aveka Inc
ATK Ordnance and Ground Systems
Battelle
Lawrence Livermore National Labs.
ARDEC – Picatinny Arsenal
ATK Thiokol Propulsion
General Science Inc
NAVSEA - Dahlgren
Aerospace Group Headquarters
ATK Thiokol Propulsion
ATK Composites
U.S. map-locations 9_98.tif
ATK Missile Systems
ATK Ammunition and Powder
NAVAIR - China Lake
Los Alamos National Labs
Sigma Labs
Technanogy
Mike Matthews Consultant
AFRL HERD
Unclassified

19. Technical Director of Advanced Programs
Questions?
Mark Cvetnic
Technical Director of Advanced Programs
ATK Missile Systems
4700 Nathan Lane North
Plymouth, MN
(763)
Unclassified