Catalytic effect of [trans-Cu(μ-OH)(μ-dmpz)]6 on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate

Spatial race under low oxygen conditions requires solid mild propellants to be used. Therefore, we study the catalytic effect of the previously reported [trans-Cu(μ-OH)(μ-dmpz)]6 complex on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate by a differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) technique. The copper compound causes a decrease of ammonium perchlorate's decomposition temperature to 372.5 °C, consequently increasing the heat release by 576 J·g−1, when used in a 5 wt% as burning rate (BR) catalyst. It must be remarked that, the [trans-Cu(μ-OH)(μ-dmpz)]6 complex presents a superior performance as BR catalyst when compared to nano-metallic oxides. This Cu(II) compound modifies the decomposition mechanism of ammonium perchlorate, providing the necessary O2 to accelerate the overall burning process paving the way to the study of copper pyrazolate complexes as BR catalysts.