"Nitrodiazene Oxides: A Unique Explosophoric Group" 

Nicholas Scherschel, MSE PhD Candidate 

Advisor: Professor Davin Piercey

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ABSTRACT

Discovering new energetic materials with superior performances (i.e. densities, detonation velocities, detonation pressures) with respect to pre-existing energetic materials is a topic of high interest for a variety of organizations. Accordingly, the exploration of unique explosophoric functional groups represents a means to formulate new energetic materials. One unique explosophoric functional group which may have improved properties relative to traditional explosophoric groups, e.g. the nitro group, is the nitrodiazene oxide (NDO) group. While unique on its own, NDOs combine the well-known azoxy (N(O)=N) and nitro (-NO2) groups into a single unique explosophoric functional group. Although NDOs may offer superior densities and enthalpies of formations relative to compounds that only contain their nitro counterparts, NDOs have been significantly less investigated when compared to compounds that possess only the nitro group. This work will discuss NDOs in chemical literature from their initial discovery to modern synthesis techniques, energetic properties, and chemical stability.