Td. Fedotova et al., Chemical analysis of aluminum as a propellant ingredient and determinationof aluminum and aluminum nitride in condensed combustion products, PROP EXPL P, 25(6), 2000, pp. 325-332
A brief survey of typical problems in the analysis of aluminum powder in al
uminized solid propellants and in analysis of condensed combustion products
of these propellants was carried out. Recommendations for applying the ver
sions developed by the authors of the known methods are given. The permanga
natometric variant of the titrimetric method was found suitable for most ta
sks concerning the measuring of the metallic/unburned aluminum. The determi
nation of aluminum nitride in combustion products using the combination of
chemical and X-ray diffraction methods was described and illustrated by res
ults obtained from condensed combustion products of propellant formulations
containing highly active ultrafine aluminum powder. Even for this formulat
ion the content of aluminum nitride in the final condensed combustion produ
cts was found to be negligibly small independently of the nature of the gas
(argon or nitrogen) used for bomb pressurization.