Development of catalytic materials for decomposition of ADN-based monopropellants

Abstract

Hydrazine (N 2 H 4), one of the most used liquid monopropellant is to be replaced by "greener" propellants e. g. based on ammonium dinitramide (ADN, NH 4 + N(NO 2) 2-), such as LMP-103S and FLP-106 within the framework of the Horizon 2020 Rheform project. While hydrazine can rely on a catalytic technology based on conventional materials such as γ-Al 2 O 3 (due to the adiabatic decomposition temperature of about 900-1 000 °C), LMP-103S and FLP-106 require catalyst support materials able to withstand higher temperatures (about 1 600 °C and 1 900 °C, respectively) and exhibit a sufficient porosity and resistance to sintering. In this paper, among the various candidates, catalysts prepared from monolith supports are investigated regarding their ability to promote both LMP-103S and FLP-106 decomposition.

Research progress on the catalytic and thermal decomposition of ammonium dinitramide (ADN)

“…Baek et al 100 prepared a kind of Pt–Cu/LHA catalyst by depositing Pt and Cu onto La-hexaaluminates and showed that the peak decomposition of ADN monopropellant (LMP-103S) was notably reduced from 175 °C (no catalyst) to 129 °C. Maleix et al 101 also found that the onset temperature for LMP-103S decomposition declined from 134 °C (no catalyst) to 105 °C, which highlighted the high activity of the Pt–Cu alloy in this reaction.…”

“…Al 2 O 3 is widely employed as a support for the decomposition of hydrazine and ADN due to its outstanding mechanical strength. 101 However, Al 2 O 3 has multiple crystalline phases, which tend to sinter and transform into the alpha phase with a lower specific surface area above 1000 °C. This transformation can negatively impact the catalytic performance, leading to a reduction in catalytic activity.…”

Synthesis of Hydroxylammonium Nitrate and Its Decomposition over Metal Oxide/Honeycomb Catalysts

“…Given that hydrazine monopropellants enable decomposition even at a low temperature by means of a catalyst, being able to decrease the ignition temperature drastically is one of the advantages [5,6]. On the other hand, hydrazine is highly toxic to human respiratory organs and skin.…”

“…Proper handling and storage of this material can be both expensive and risky [2][3][4][7][8][9][10][11]. Since 2011, when hydrazine and its derivatives were added to the list of substances of very high concern (SVHC), research on eco-friendly, low-toxicity liquid propellants has drawn keen attention [1,5,9,12].…”

Transmissive Mode Laser Micro-Ablation Performance of Ammonium Dinitramide-Based Liquid Propellant for Laser Micro-Thruster

“…However, in the long-term use process, many problems such as low specific impulse, flammability and explosion, environmental pollution, biological hazards, expensive launch equipment, and sustainable use have become increasingly prominent [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]. Due to the current global energy shortage and increasingly serious environmental problems, green and high-performance propellants have attracted more and more attention, and at the same time, higher requirements have been placed on the research and development of aerospace propellants [ 5 ]. Therefore, the development of pollution-free, recyclable, green and high-performance propellants has important scientific significance and application value.…”