Fodder for OOE- India creates most powerful nonnuclear explosive

[Blademaster]

See here:

Livefist - Indian Defence & Aerospace: Indian Mil Lab: We've Created The World's Most Powerful Conventional Explosive

I know little about explosives. So can you tell me what you think of India's claims and whether they can be substantiated?

[Officer of Engineers]

It reads like that they somehow found out the chemical make up of CL-20 and came up with a method to duplicating the compound. I don't see why not the claims cannot be true. Knowing that it can be done and someone else has done it would give you a leg up.

[cr9527]

It reads like that they somehow found out the chemical make up of CL-20 and came up with a method to duplicating the compound. I don't see why not the claims cannot be true. Knowing that it can be done and someone else has done it would give you a leg up.

Why hasn't the states fielded something like this? After all, this was invented back in late 80s.

[citanon]

Why hasn't the states fielded something like this? After all, this was invented back in late 80s.

As the article says, it's still cost prohibitive.

[cr9527]

As the article says, it's still cost prohibitive.

So for the past 20 years, US still hasn't developed a cheaper way to manufacture these?

Will there be a future for this?

[Officer of Engineers]

Why? Nukes does a way better job and RDX is still effectivie in shreading steel casing into flying razor blades.

[USSWisconsin]

It sounds like it would be more suitable for use in nuclear weapons, or in an initiator stage on a conventional bomb, than as a bulk bomb filler, with cost of the stuff. The idea of using it in Heat warheads sounds promising, a light little rocket warhead that could deal with an MBT head on? It burns at 9380 m/s ! But CL-20 is is not 15 x as powerful as HMX by weight and it isn't Octanitrocubane either, that burns at 10,100 m/s!

Hexanitrohexaazaisowurtzitane - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octanitrocubane

[Blademaster]

As the article says, it's still cost prohibitive.

Not if you are dealing with platforms where weight and space are very valuable commodities such as combat planes with its limited payload capabilities and combat ships and submarines with limited space for ordnance. For instance, the F-22 Raptor, instead of carrying 6 internal weapons, now can carry 12 internal weapons thus satisfying the payload requirement and meeting the same capabilities of a F-15 plane, thus making this a beneficial gain over the costs.

[USSWisconsin]

It sounds to me like it is not nearly twice as powerful as HMX (9100 m/s, 2g/cm3), only about 25% more powerful, but its density isn't mentioned so it could be more dense and allow a smaller bomb that way.


This looks even meaner "9-tol" but it looks pretty sensitive and unstable
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2,4,6-T...1,3,5-triazine

[proud2bindian]

It could be true because atleast till now The Indians have not made any false claims on what they have achieved.Conventional Explosives is something which can be used if they do not have to go for A Nuclear War with the Neighbours.