Discovery of new molecule can lead to more efficient rocket fuel

Trinitramid – that's the name of the new molecule that may be a component in future rocket fuel. This fuel could be 20-30 percent more efficient in comparison with the best rocket fuels we have today. The discovery was made at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) in Sweden.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-12/src-don122210.php

Wikipedia is instantaneous!

"This page was last modified on 22 December 2010 at 20:42."

 

Quicker than the own site of KTH.

Edited December 23, 201015 yr by michel123456

Bet its still worse than hydrogen and oxygen.

If that's the structure I think it is, nitrogen surrounded by three nitrate groups that should be somewhat unstable (good for a rocket fuel I would imagine). I wonder if they had to isolate it in a solid argon matrix or something. I would also like to know what the hybridization on the central nitrogen is, there might be some highly hyperconjugated [math] \pi [/math]-system stabilizing the compound if the central nitrogen isn't purely [math] sp^{3} [/math]. I would kill to see an X-band EPR (electron paramagnetic resonance) spectrum of this. There are probably very unique hyperfine splitting patterns. Not many compounds have a radical that can bounce between four equal Z nuclei in such a high symmetry environment, not because it is difficult, because this situation just doesn't arise much.

Does anyone know what state this material is in at ambient pressure and temperature? What kind of rocket can be powered by it? Solid? Liquid? Monopropellant?

 

I admit that I haven't been able to read too much of the articles. Some links didn't seem to work.