5,6-Di(2-fluoro-2,2-dinitroethoxy)furazano[3,4-b]pyrazine: a high performance melt-cast energetic material and its polycrystalline properties

Abstract

5,6-Di(2-fluoro-2,2-dinitroethoxy)furazano[3,4-b]pyrazine was synthesized in a three-step process starting from 3,4-diaminofurazan (DAF) including a significant nucleophilic substitution reaction under the catalytic effect of trisodium phosphate dodecahydrate. Characterization of this molecule indicates that it possesses a higher crystal density than that of 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) at ambient temperature with acceptable melting-point and energetic properties approaching those of 1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazacyclohexane (RDX) but with a higher thermal stability and lower sensitivity towards impact and friction. To investigate its polycrystalline properties, differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), powder-X-ray-diffraction (PXRD) and ab initio calculation using the Viena Ab initio simulation package (VASP) were employed.