ESHS Mission Areas | Joint Army Navy NASA Air Force
JANNAF is Getting a Fresh Look – Preview it Here

ESHS Mission Areas

Mission Area I: Thermal Decomposition and Cookoff

  • Thermal Decomposition, Ignition, and Combustion: Fundamental experimental and modeling studies of decomposition of ingredients and propellants (including kinetics, mechanisms, microstructure, and thermochemistry); ignition of ingredients and propellants (including ignition mechanisms, ignition transients, and effects of heating rate); combustion of ingredients and propellants (including burn rate, pressure exponent, and temperature sensitivity; understanding of the microstructural combustion zone, chemistry and heat release; burning in cracks, defects, and thermally damaged materials; convective combustion and DDT); characterization of thermally damaged materials; coupled thermal-chemical-mechanical modeling of cookoff. (Papers in this area will be considered for joint ESHS/CS sessions.)
  • Cookoff Hazards Assessment and Mitigation: Cookoff response of propulsion systems and components; cookoff mitigation technologies; threat/hazards assessment (THA) of cookoff scenarios; relationships between THA and cookoff test procedures; small scale test methodologies for predicting cookoff of full scale systems.

 

Mission Area II: Shock/Impact-Induced Reactions

  • Coupling in Energetic Materials between Mechanical and Reactive Response: Modeling and experimental studies on sub-detonative events triggered by impact or low amplitude shock loading; experimental, theoretical, and computational studies on the influence that the damage and fracture of the energetic material has on the initiation and evolution of reaction; development and use of experiments and diagnostics to either 1) identify fundamental mechanisms for the initiation and evolution of reaction (e.g., inter-granular friction vs plastic heating of binder material vs intra-granular fracture), 2) obtain the material response of the individual energetic constituents (e.g., for use in meso-scale modeling), 3) aid in sub-detonative model validation, or 4) better characterize sub-detonative responses in full scale systems.
  • Detonation Phenomena: Modeling and experimental studies of shock-to-detonation transitions (SDT), deflagration-to-detonation transitions (DDT), unknown-to-detonation (XDT), delayed detonation phenomena (e.g., due to shock desensitization), or other detonation phenomena not mentioned.  Experimental and theoretical studies of hot spot initiation and growth.  Scaling of fundamental physics to predict full scale events.

 

Mission Area III: Insensitive Munitions Technology

Areas of interest include but are not limited to:

  • historical reviews of prior IM technology developments and lessons learned from integration into munitions;
  • ongoing IM technology development efforts whether general in nature or geared to specific systems/munitions;
  • design and functional details on mitigation concepts involving both passive and active features;
  • results of IM and Safety testing of components and full up systems;
  • evaluation of the relationship between small scale and full scale.

 

Mission Area IV: Energetic Systems Vulnerability

Any aspects related to the response of gun propellants, ammunition, and ammunition compartments to shaped charge jets, other penetrators, and spall; and new LOVA propellant technologies. (Papers in this area will be considered for joint ESHS/CS sessions.)

 

Mission Area V: Energetic Systems Safety and Hazard Classification

  • Hazard Classification of Large Solid Rocket Motors: Test methods/procedures, analysis techniques, experimental data and computer simulation results related to the assessment of hazard response of large solid rocket motors for hazard classification purposes. In particular, papers covering three hazard scenarios are of interest, including: (1) detonation/explosive reaction characteristics of various propellant families subjected to explosive shocks, for example critical diameter, shock sensitivity, and the relationship between the two parameters; (2)response of large SRMs in an engulfing fire or fast cookoff scenario; and (3) creation and effects of propellant damage on hazard response of large SRMs in impact and other accident scenarios.
  • Energetic Systems Safety and Hazard Classification: Harmonization of Hazard Classification and Insensitive Munitions Testing: Issues identified by the service safety offices: hazard classification issues: differences between insensitive munitions and hazard classification and safety testing and standardization. Assessment of response and pass/fail criteria. Alternate test protocols and the role of small scale to full scale testing and hazard classification; and miscellaneous safety issues and programs.

 

Mission Area VI: Energetic Liquid Hazards

  • Hazards characterization associated with energetic liquids either as part of bipropellant combinations, monopropellant formulations, or liquid ingredients in solid propellant formulations and their respective propulsion systems.
  • Identification and application of meaningful analytical/experimental methods for assessing hazard risk with energetic liquids, and the development and standardization of new test methods for assessing hazards in the different propulsion systems considered.