High fidelity sheet explosive simulants

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10941085-B2
Application number	US-201715604716-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	May 25, 2017
Priority date	May 25, 2017
Publication date	Mar 9, 2021
Grant date	Mar 9, 2021

Abstract

An explosive sheet simulant that uses an ethylene vinyl acetate polymer combined with either a mixture of a boron carbide and iron oxide for X-ray attenuating properties or calcium carbonate for millimeter wave properties, wherein the components of the mixture are selected such that the sheet has a predetermined flexural modulus combined with particle density, effective atomic number, x-ray transmission properties, or millimeter wave properties.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An explosive simulant, consisting of a mixture of:
52.0-62.0% ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) polymer; and
38-48% calcium carbonate,
wherein the explosive simulant is in a form of a sheet having predetermined flexural modulus and millimeter wave properties.

2. The explosive simulant according to claim 1 , wherein the flexural modulus and millimeter wave properties is approximately equal to that of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) or cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX) sheet explosive.

3. A method for manufacturing the explosive simulant of claim 1 , the method comprising:
melting and blending an amount of ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) polymer;
adding to the EVA an amount calcium carbonate, and mixing to form a uniform mixture; and
pouring the uniform mixture into a tray or mold and heating until a sheet is formed, wherein the sheet has predetermined flexural modulus and millimeter wave properties.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the explosive simulant consists of 38-48% calcium carbonate and 52.0-62.0% EVA polymer.

5. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the melting and blending is achieved by using a two-roll mill machine or other pressure mixing operation.

6. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the uniform mixture in the tray or mold is heated at a temperature of 105° C.-130° C. for 10-120 minutes.

7. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the sheet has flexural modulus and millimeter wave properties approximately equal to that of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN) or cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine (RDX) sheet explosive.

Assignees

• The Government Of The Us Secretary Of Homeland Security

Inventors

• Brogden Michael
• Duffy Steve

Classifications

• C08K3/38 Primary

  Boron-containing compounds · CPC title

• C08K2003/2244

  of zirconium · CPC title

• C08K2003/2265

  of iron · CPC title

• C08L23/0853

  Ethylene vinyl acetate copolymers · CPC title

• C08K2003/265

  Calcium, strontium or barium carbonate · CPC title