An Energetic Triazolo-1,2,4-Triazine and its N-Oxide

The reaction of 3-amino-5-nitro-1,2,4-triazole with nitrous acid produces the corresponding diazonium salt. When the diazonium salt is treated with nitroacetonitrile, a subsequent condensation and cyclization reaction occurres to produced 4-amino-3,7-dinitrotriazolo-[5,1-c][1,2,4] triazine (DPX-26). X-ray crystallographic analysis shows that the DPX-26 has a density of 1.86gcm(-3), while it is calculated to have a heat of formation of 398.3kJmol(-1). DPX-26 is predicted to approach the explosive performance of RDX but displays significantly better safety properties. Oxidation of DPX-26 using hypofluorous acid produces 4-amino-3,7-dinitrotriazolo-[5,1-c][1,2,4] triazine 4-oxide (DPX-27), which is also predicted to be a high-performance material with enhanced safety properties.