Future Research Areas

The surge in the economies of China, India, and Brazil along with the long-awaited re-emergence of Russia has resulted in much more research globally and a corresponding increase in the amount of research in energetics materials. The year 2012 saw the publication of ‘Energetics Science and Technology in Central Europe’ by the Center for Energetic Concepts Development, University of Maryland. The editors deserve praise in producing a worthy successor to previous volumes. A quick scan of the contents page reveals the truly interdisciplinary nature of this field including molecular dynamics, mechanical characterisation and chemical synthesis, use (in quarrying) and degradation. In the paragraphs below I highlight some of the prime areas where I feel research continues to make exciting and relevant contributions. I do specifically highlight some individuals as their research provides an easy entry into the developments shown. A complete list of such researchers would be similar to the cumulative author index of this journal! In the area of detonation research, the on-going efforts of a number of researchers show considerable promise in analysing the detonation phenomena. The explosives group in the University Coimbra, Portugal (led by Prof. J. Campos) continue to produce excellent research using streak imagery in combination with high-speed photography. This allows meso-scale measurements on the progress of detonation waves across individual crystals in polymer-bonded explosives to be quantified. The progress of phase doppler velocimetry (PDV) in establishing itself as a complementary technique to the well-known VISAR system is rapid, researchers such as Dan Dolan at Sandia National Laboratory are pushing this growth. The low power of the laser systems used in PDV and the relative ease of operating this type of diagnostic have meant it is being used in a wide variety of materials. Researchers at the Atomic Weapons Establishment (AWE) in the UK are using this to measure the output of micro-detonator systems and obtain the time-resolved data that is necessary to obtain good quantitative comparisons between materials. I have used such a system to measure the shock transmission properties of different thicknesses of materials in very small scale gap-tests, revealing the structure of the stress waves with sub-nanosecond resolution. The criteria for ignition and growth of reaction, hot-spot formation, prove fertile ground. The research directions may be diverse – looking at polymer-bonded systems or crystal aggregates – but in association with chemical techniques developed in the pharmaceutical industry, co-crystallisation may provide a way of tailoring the sensitivity of materials without compromising on performance. This may via control of internal defects of the crystal, overall crystal morphology and the surface structure. In the UK, Prof. Colin Pulham at the University of Edinburgh is piloting this approach. It is obvious that a link between the meso-scale measurement of the progress of the detonation reaction zone along with good spatial-temporal resolution from PDV would be a powerful combination in linking the meso-structure, reaction sensitivity, and mechanical response which much modelling effort now demand. In addition to detonation and ignition studies, traditional energetics area, emerging aspects such as green energetics are increasingly a research priority. The environmental impact of energetics, the increasing pressure to remove lead salts, production of greenhouse gases, environmental clean-up costs and carbon-tax are drivers that will need to be addressed by the energetics community. Here there is much effort in the US, Canada and Europe. In an increasingly crowded and heavily-legislated market place many manufacturers are hoping to establish their green credentials. In all these areas the increased interaction and understanding between theorists, computer modellers and experimentalists across many branches of science and engineering is essential. The consequences of misunderstanding are costly in both a physical and a financial sense. In closing, I would like to say, that despite the financial constraints that many members of our community are operating under there exists a large drive to innovate, understand and apply the results of research; this journal provides an irreplaceable conduit for that interaction. William G. Proud Institute of Shock Physics Imperial College London

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