Detonation Failure in Ideal and Non-Ideal Explosives

In this paper we revisit and extend the classic treatment of detonation failure developed by Eyring et. al. [1]. We recently published a development of this theory [2] in which a pressure dependant rate law was substituted for the Arrhenius temperature dependant law originally considered. Here we show that by assuming a 2-component rate law based upon a temperature dependant ignition phase and a pressure dependant growth phase we are able to rationalise the very different failure characteristics (critical diameter and velocity decrement at failure) of ideal and non-ideal explosives. \newline \newline [1] Eyring, H., Powell, R.E., Duffy, G.H., and Parlin, R.B., ``The stability of detonation,'' Chem. Rev. 45, 69-181 (1949). \newline [2] Haskins, P.J., Cook, M.D., and Wood, A.D., ``On the dependence of critical diameter and velocity decrement at failure on the burn law,'' in proceedings of the 33rd International Pyrotechnics Seminar, Fort Collins, Co, USA, 385-391 (2006).