Thermal stability of PBX-9404, LX03 and LX04

In the Hotcake experiments, PBX-9404 was subjected to various temperature spikes from 202 degrees Centigrade to 268 degrees Centigrade to determine conditions which would result in ignition of the explosive. since that time, measurements have been made of decomposition rates of PBX-9404, LX03, LX04, and pure HMX, at temperatures from about 240 degrees Centigrade to 270 degrees Centigrade. These data have been combined to provide a more accurate definition of the thermal stability of high explosives based on HMX. A set of values of decomposition rates and heats of decomposition has been obtained which is consistent with all previous Hotcake experiments, and will allow predictions of the results of similar experiments with PBX-9404, LX03, and LX04. Computations were made with the Hangfire program on the IBM 7090