Investigation of Energy Release Characteristics of Energetic Materials

Abstract. Accurate characterization of the energy-release behavior of energetic materials remains challenging due to the extreme conditions involved, including ultra-high temperatures and pressures, wide temporal and spatial scales, and strong coupling among multiple physical processes. To address these challenges, this paper presents a systematic investigation that integrates formulation-based performance modeling with advanced experimental diagnostics, aiming to establish a reliable and physically grounded evaluation framework.At the core of this work is an independently developed detonation thermodynamics program, VHL, constructed on a high-fidelity equation-of-state framework suitable for extreme detonation environments. The VHL code enables direct prediction of key detonation performance parameters from formulation-level inputs, including detonation velocity, detonation pressure, product composition, and isentropic expansion behavior. In addition, an automated coupling between thermodynamic calculations and dynamic simulations is implemented, allowing consistent transfer of thermodynamic states into continuum-scale hydrodynamic analyses. This thermodynamics–dynamics integration provides an efficient pathway for evaluating both initial detonation characteristics and subsequent energy-release and work-output processes.The proposed methodology is applied to conventional explosives, negative oxygen-balance explosives, and nitrogen-rich energetic ionic salts. The results elucidate several key thermodynamic mechanisms governing detonation performance. In particular, carbon condensation–induced secondary energy release is identified as an important factor in oxygen-deficient systems, while detonation performance anomalies in nitrogen-rich materials are attributed to small-molecule-dominated product distributions and their influence on temperature evolution and isentropic expansion efficiency.The predictive capability of the framework is validated through comparisons with cylinder expansion experiments and underwater near-field work-capacity evaluations. The good agreement between simulations and experiments demonstrates the robustness and applicability of the thermodynamics-based approach, providing reliable support for energetic material design, performance assessment, and application-oriented selection.