Abstract:
Fronts of weakly exothermal chemical reaction may propagate in solids at very low temperatures ( 4K≤T≤77K) thanks to a quite unusual mechanism, involving a feedback between the heat produced by the reaction and the disruption of the solid matrix. In this class of phenomena, the reaction may be induced by mechanical constraints, without a large elevation of temperature. On the basis of a simple phenomenological model, we investigate ignition of a propagating front by initially (i) disrupting a localized zone of the solid matrix, or by (ii) introducing a temperature jump, leading to a thermal shock with strong temperature gradients. In particular, we show that reaction can be initiated by disrupting only a very small fraction of the sample. Applications to the problem of initiation of solid explosives by friction or shocks is briefly discussed.
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Received 26 January 2001 and Received in final form 3 May 2001
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Pumir, A., Barelko, V. Cold ignition of combustion-like waves of cryo-chemical reactions in solids. Eur. Phys. J. B 22, 71–77 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00011137
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00011137