Synergetic Effect of Potassium Oxysalts on Combustion and Ignition of Al/CuO Composites

In this study, we studied the synergetic effect of potassium oxysalts on combustion and ignition of nano aluminum (Al) and nano copper oxide (CuO) composites. Potassium periodate (KIO4) and potassium perchlorate (KClO4) are good oxidizers with high oxygen content and strong oxidizability. Different contents of KIO4 and KClO4 were added to nano Al/CuO and the composites were assembled by sonication. When the peak pressure of nano Al/CuO was increased ~5-13 times, the pressurization rate was improved by ~1-3 orders of magnitude, the ignition delay time was shortened by ~0.08 ms-0.52 ms and the reaction completeness was adjustable when 30-70% KIO4 and KClO4 were added into the composites. The reaction of Al/KIO4 and Al/KClO4 at a lower temperature was helpful to ignite the ternary composite. Meanwhile, CuO significantly reduced the peak temperature of oxygen released from the decomposition of KIO4 and KClO4. The synergetic effect of binary oxidizers made the combustion performance of the ternary composites better than that of the binary composites. The present work indicates that KIO4 and KClO4 are promising additives for nano Al/CuO to tune and promote the combustion performance. The ternary composites have potential application in energy devices and combustion apparatus.