Energetic Materials

Resource Recovery & Reuse

TPL is an industry leader in the R³ of energetic materials reclaimed from demilitarization processes with a reuse rate overall in excess of 95%. TPL's integrated processing facility converts over 4 million pounds of artillery propellants per year into commercial blasting agents for the mining industries. R³ facilities designed by TPL are being established at the Hawthorne Army Depot, NV and the Crane Army Ammunition Activity, IN.

TPL's expertise in demilitarized materials resource recovery and reuse is providing the military with new options to re-utilize valuable energetic materials for weapons applications. These include the recovery of magnesium from pyrotechnic compositions and HMX, an extremely valuable explosive constituent from high performance explosives or propellants.

TPL's innovative use of energetic materials has resulted in the development of two technologies which have profound implications for the US military - the extension of gun barrel performance and life through the application of a refractory metal-explosive cladding process and a unique propellant powder for small arms ammunition which has flashless characteristics.

HMX Recovery & Requalification

TPL has developed a patented process for the recovery of pure HMX from a variety of the energetic material formulations. Demilitarization of obsolete weapons and rocket motors provides TPL with a continuous source of available material for recovery and reuse. The process oxidizes and removes polymeric binders and plasticizers from the formulation and produces a product with extremely low RDX levels. The HMX produced by this process is very pure and does not include any residual polymer or plasticizer. Testing at Los Alamos National Laboratories and the at Indian Head have verified that the material could easily qualify as virgin material for military use with some modification of particle distributions. The extremely low levels of RDX in the recovered HMX from TPL's process makes this material especially well suited to high temperature applications.

Magnesium Recovery

TPL is engaged in a government supported program to develop a process and build a plant to extract and refine magnesium (Mg) from different obsolete military flares. The objective is to provide a facility to economically demilitarize flares and produce pure Mg for reuse from an environmentally friendly process. The challenge is to design the facility capable of processing the full spectrum of military ballistic flares, with different dimensions and chemical compositions. The production goal is to produce 600 pounds of Mg per shift.