Japan Explosive Society
Dr. Hirotaka Matsunaga
Continuous synthesis of ammonium dinitramide-based ionic liquids and analysis of their decomposition mechanism
Dr. Hirotaka Matsunaga published articles on Science and Technology of Energetic Materials, entitles “Influence of copper compounds on the exothermic reactions of an ammonium dinitramide-based energetic ionic liquids” and ”Feasibility evaluation of the nitration of potassium sulfamate using a small continuous reactor”.
Hydrazine has been widely used as a liquid propellant for small rockets and nano-satellites. Hydrazine decomposes easily in the presence of a catalyst to form a high-temperature gas that can be stored at room temperature, but it is highly toxic and flammable, making it difficult and expensive to handle. As a main ingredient in liquid propellants, it is expected that a new type of propellant will emerge that generates more energy and is less toxic than hydrazine.
In this study, he focuses on ammonium dinitramide (ADN) as an alternative to hydrazine, propose a synthesis method to realize ADN-based liquid propellant, and evaluate it by thermal analysis. An energetic ionic liquid propellant (EILP) is prepared from a eutectic mixture, the composition of which is ADN, monomethylamine nitrate, and urea. This composition provides a propulsive performance (specific impulse) that exceeds that of hydrazine, according to calculations. However, the high cost of synthesizing energetic materials as raw materials and the high energy required for pyrolysis of EILPs with this composition are issues to be addressed. To solve these problems, he has attempted the feasibility of continuous synthesis of ADN using a small reactor and found that the addition of basic copper nitrate (BCN) accelerates the pyrolysis of ADN-based EILPs and improves their ignition properties, and we have clarified the mechanism.
Dr. Hirotaka Matsunaga's research synthesized and analyzed energetic ionic liquid propellants as liquid propellants for spacecraft in detail, and proposed an innovative composition and preparation method. The results of this research are highly evaluated to be deserved the Technology Award.
| March 2010 | Graduated from the Department of Materials Engineering, School of Engineering, Yokohama National University |
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| March 2012 | Completed Master course of Risk Management Major, Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences |
| April 2013 | JSPS Research Fellow (DC2) |
| March 2015 | Completed Ph.D. course of Risk Management Major, Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences |
| March 2015 | PhD (Engineering) |
| April 2015 | Assistant Professor, Department of Chemical System Engineering, Schoo of Engineering, Fukuoka University |