Preparation of a nanoscale homogeneous energetic lead azides@porous carbon hybrid with high ignition ability by in situ synthesis

The ever-increasing demand for miniaturized explosive systems urgently calls for better performance studies through the synthesis of novel nanoscale materials. In this work, lead azide@porous carbon hybrids (LA@PC) are synthesized by in situ carbonization and azidation of a lead-containing cross-linked gel, in which the nanoscale LA is uniformly distributed on the porous carbon skeleton. The detailed characterization has shown that such outstanding performance stems from the LA nanoscale effect and the excellent conductivity and thermal conductivity of carbon cages. Because of the favorable unique structure, the prepared composite material exhibits excellent ignition performance, and its flame sensitivity can reach 42 cm, which solves the problem of poor ignition capacity of LA on all occasions. In addition, the composite has very low electrostatic sensitivity, further improving the safety of practical application. This work makes it possible for LA to be detonated without using lead styphnate, paving a new way for improving the flame sensitivity of primary explosives.