Comparative theoretical studies of dinitromethyl-or trinitromethyl-modified derivatives of CL-20

The heats of formation (HOFs), energetic properties, strain energies, thermal stability, and impact sensitivity for a series of trinitromethyl-or dinitromethyl-modified CL-20 derivatives were studied by using density functional theory. It is found that the trinitromethyl group is an effective structural unit for improving the gas-phase HOFs and energetic properties of the derivatives. However, incorporating the dinitromethyl group into the parent compound is not favorable for increasing its HOFs and detonation properties. The effects of the dinitromethyl or trinitromethyl groups on the stability of the parent compound are discussed. The studies on strain energies show that the introduction of the trinitromethyl group intensifies the strain of the cage skeleton for the title compounds, whereas for the dinitromethyl groups, the case is quite the contrary. An analysis of the bond dissociation energies for several relatively weak bonds suggests that the substitution of the dinitromethyl or trinitromethyl group decreases the thermal stability of the derivatives. The C-NO₂ bond in the dinitromethyl or trinitromethyl group is the weakest one and the homolysis of the C-NO₂ bond may be the initial step in thermal decomposition. In addition, according to the calculated free space per molecule, the introduction of the dinitromethyl or trinitromethyl group increases the impact sensitivities of the derivatives. Considering the detonation performance, thermal stability, and impact sensitivity, six compounds can be regarded as the target high-energetic compounds.