Effect of la2o3, pr2o3 and nd2o3 on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate

Abstract The effect of ‘p’ type rare earth oxides with partially filled ‘f’ orbitals like La2O3, Pr2O3 and Nd2O3 on the thermal decomposition of ammonium perchlorate (AP) has been studied using isothermal and non-isothermal methods of thermal analysis. Differential thermal analysis (DTA) and thermogravimetry (TG) results reveal that these oxides influence the thermal decomposition pattern of AP significantly and bring down the decomposition temperature substantially. Isothermal studies showed substantial acceleration of the decomposition of AP with the incorporation of these oxides as little as 0.05%. Isothermal data were analyzed using various kinetic models. The activation energy for the catalyzed decomposition of AP was significantly lower. The catalytic effect is explained on the basis wherein the ‘p’ type oxides act as conduites through metal cation in the electron-transfer mechanism for AP decomposition.