Combustion processes are relevant to many areas of daily life, including transport, energy, fire protection and military technology. Pyrotechnic systems are used in vehicle safety, as signal ammunition for rescue systems and in defense systems.
The group for combustion and pyrotechnics is concerned with the physical mechanisms and chemical reactions that occur in combustion processes, and their optimization.
In an optical bomb and a Crawford unit, the combustion of solid, liquid and gaseous propellants and combustibles is investigated. Under pressures of 0.01 MPa to 25 MPa, and a nitrogen, oxygen, argon or air atmosphere, various parameters such as combustion rate, temperature and chemical species can be measured.
The research group for pyrotechnics is concerned with the chemical reaction of inorganic particle mixtures for rapid and self-sustaining energy supply. Alongside existing systems, new, high-performance pyrotechnics are investigated for various military and civil applications.
The group for fire / flame research is concerned with the development and testing of flame retardants and fire protection systems, as well as the investigation of different combustible materials. Open fires, smouldering fires, chemical fires and metal fires are investigated, as well as explosive materials.
Fraunhofer Institute for Chemical Technology