Nonclassical steady-state detonation regimes in pressed TNETB

The reaction zones and the dependence of the velocity of steady-state detonation waves on the initial density of pressed TNETB are studied using a VISAR interferometer. It is shown that, in the range of initial densities of TNETB 1.56–1.77 g/cm3, the propagation of a steady-state detonation wave is possible without the range of elevated pressures (chemical spike) in the reaction zone predicted by the classical theory. The dependence of the detonation velocity on the initial density shows singularities which indicate that a steady-state underdriven regime can occur in this range of initial densities. Based on the well-known theoretical concepts of the hot-spot decomposition mechanism of heterogeneous explosives, it is shown that the possibility of the existence of a steady-state detonation wave without a chemical spike, in particular, underdriven detonation, and the effect of the internal structure of the charge on the detonation regime are explained by the decomposition of explosives at the shock-wave front.