Methyl sydnone imine and its energetic salts

Abstract

Several energetic salts of the 5-amino-3-methyl-1,2,3-oxadiazolium cation were synthesized and characterized. Structures are confirmed by IR, ¹H and ¹³C NMR spectroscopy, and X-ray crystallography. The perchlorate salt was thermally stable, with a crystal density of 1.826 g cm⁻³ and its calculated energetic performance exceeded that of TNT. Except for the perchlorate, these salts are mechanically insensitive. This work explored the methyl sydnone imine cation as a suitable energetic compound, which was quickly obtained through facile syntheses. This is the first exploration of sydnone imines as components of energetic materials.