Construction of CL-20 spherulite @Al microspheres for enhanced laser ignition and energy release

Microstructure construction is an effective strategy for regulating the performance of energetic materials. Herein, CL-20@Al microspheres were fabricated by integrating porous CL-20 spherulites with Al via a rapid solvent–nonsolvent method. The results show that Al is uniformly distributed on the surface of CL-20 spherulites, and the resulting CL-20@Al microspheres possess a narrow particle size distribution, abundant nanoscale pores and enhanced dispersibility. Compared to the physical mixture, the CL-20@Al microspheres demonstrate significantly improved energy release performance, with increases of 10.4% in heat release, 33.3% in peak pressure, and 24.4% in pressurization rate. Laser ignition further reveals a 72.5% reduction in ignition delay time and a 66.8% increase in combustion rate. Meanwhile, the CL-20@Al microspheres also exhibit significantly reduced impact sensitivity compared to CL-20 spherulites. The porous structure, intimate Al/CL-20 interfacial contact, and uniform Al distribution on the porous surface collectively enhance the laser ignition and energy release of CL-20@Al microspheres.