The reaction of azido polymers with double and triple bonds of light olefins can lead to triazole and aziridine cycles formation on the azide bearing sites of the polymer. An experimental investigation of the burning behaviour of these modified polymers has shown that triazole substituted GAPs exhibit a higher burning rate at low pressure, which may be a desirable characteristic for ducted rocket applications. However, the chemical reaction of interest is highly exothermic and as such, it represents a significant safety risk when conducted in bulk. In order to reduce this risk, we have assessed the chemical kinetics of triazole formation by NMR spectroscopy and linked this information with DSC measurements to produce a safe procedure for the synthesis of GAP-triazole polymer in a chemical reactor.
Ball lightning is a mysterious phenomenon reported by numerous eyewitnesses. The very limited instrumental characterization of ball lightning recorded in nature has maintained the mystery surrounding this phenomenon and given rise to many theories on their generation mechanism. In this work, we reproduced conditions in the laboratory similar to thunderstorms and observed the generation of luminous plasma balls. The formation of these plasma balls is based on the confinement of the ejected plasma from the ground into the lower pressure channel produced along the path of the discharge. The spectral, temporal, and spatial characterizations done in this work can give some indications on the formation of ball lightning and more particularly its containment with quasiconstant diameter, its average speed, its erratic path, and the various colors of ball lightning observed in nature.
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