Theoretical study on BTF-based cocrystals: effect of external electric field

The external electric field plays an important role in the sensitivity of cocrystal energetic materials. To reveal the influence of external electric field on benzotrifuroxan/2,4,6-trinitroaniline (BTF/TNA), benzotrifuroxan/trinitroazetidine (BTF/TNAZ), benzotrifuroxan/1,3,5-trinitrobenzene (BTF/TNB), and benzotrifuroxan/trinitrotoluene (BTF/TNT) cocrystals' sensitivity, atoms in molecules (AIM), frontier molecular orbitals, nitro group charges (Q_NO2), electron density values (ρ), electrostatic surface potentials (ESPs), bond dissociation energy (E_BDE), and interaction energy (E_int) of the C-NO₂ bond were calculated by density functional theory at M062X-D3/ma-def2 TZVPP and B3LYP-D3/6-311 + G (d, p) levels in this article. The results indicate that both negative and positive electric fields reduce the energy gap of the BTF-based cocrystals, and BTF/TNAZ is the most sensitive cocrystal among the four cocrystals. For BTF/TNA and BTF/TNB, the E_BDE and the negative charge of the nitro group decreases with increasing positive electric field strength, the V_{s max} increases with positive electric field strength, and the sensitivity of cocrystal eventually tends to increase under the positive electric field. For BTF/TNAZ and BTF/TNT, the E_BDE and the negative charge of the nitro group decrease with increasing negative electric field strength, the V_{s max} increases with negative electric field strength, and the sensitivity of cocrystal eventually tends to increase under the negative electric field. Finally, the variation in bond length, nitro charge, and AIM electron density values are well correlated with the strengths of the external electric field.

Di- and trioxides of triazolotetrazine: Computational prediction of crystal structures and estimation of physicochemical characteristics

Simulation of crystal structures of series 1(2)-R-1(2)H-[1,2,3]triazolo[4,5-e][1,2,3,4]tetrazine 5,7-dioxides, 1,5,7-trioxides, 4,6-dioxides and 3,4,6-trioxides was carried out using an original technique based on the method of atom-atom potentials and quantum chemistry. The effect of the position of the substituent in the triazole ring on the change in the crystal structures of these compounds and their thermochemical characteristics was studied for the first time. For some of synthesized compounds, thermochemical characteristics were investigated and differential scanning calorimetry curves were obtained. Detonation parameters were calculated, on the basis of which the prospects for the use of the considered compounds were assessed.

Quest: structure and properties of BTF–nitrobenzene cocrystals with different ratios of components

Using the methods of quantum chemistry and AAP, the structure of BTF cocrystals with nitrobenzene, 1,2-, 1,3-, 1,4-dinitrobenzene, 1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, and hexanitrobenzene with different ratios of components (1 : 1, 1 : 2, 1 : 3, 2 : 1, 3 : 1) is modeled.

Energetic Co-Crystal of a Primary Metal-Free Explosive with BTF. Ideal Pair for Co-Crystallization

Co-crystallization is an elegant technique to tune the physical properties of crystalline solids. In the field of energetic materials, co-crystallization is currently playing an important role in the engineering of crystals with improved performance. Here, based on an analysis of the structural features of the green primary explosive, tetramethylammonium salt of 7-oxo-5-(trinitromethyl)-4,5,6,7-tetrahydrotetrazolo[1,5-a][1,3,5]triazin-5-ide (1), a co-former such as the powerful secondary explosive, benzotrifuroxan (BTF, 2), has been proposed to improve it. Compared to the original 1, its co-crystal with BTF has a higher detonation pressure and velocity, as well as an initiating ability, while the impact sensitivity and thermal stability remained at about the same level. Both co-formers, 1 and 2, and co-crystal 3 were characterized by single-crystal X-ray diffraction and their crystal packing was analyzed in detail by the set of approaches, including periodic calculations. In the co-crystal 3, all intermolecular interactions were significantly redistributed. However, no new types of intermolecular interactions were formed during co-crystallization. Moreover, the interaction energies of structural units in crystals before and after co-crystallization were approximately the same. A similar trend was observed for the volumes occupied by structural units and their densifications. The similar nature of the organization of the crystals of the co-formers and the co-crystal gives grounds to assert that the selected co-formers are an ideal pair for co-crystallization, and the invariability of the organization of the crystals was probably responsible for the preservation of some of their properties.