Popular Mechanics is not great for people with more than the bare minimum knowledge of chemistry. The new explosive is bis(1,2,4-oxadiazole)bis(methylene)dinitrate:<p><pre><code> ONO2
/
H2C
\
C---O
// \
N N
\ //
\ //
C
|
C
// \
// \
N N
\ //
O---C
\
CH2
/
O2NO
</code></pre>
I propose the acronym "BODAMN" (Bis Oxa-Di-Azole Methylene Nitrate), as the one most likely to catch on among those melt-casting it. Army folks love pronounceable acronyms.<p>In the absence of sufficient oxygen, reaction products are likely to be<p>C6H4N6O8 --> 3 N2 + 2 H2O + 6 CO<p>C6H4N6O8 --> 3 N2 + H2O + H2 + CO2 + 5 CO<p>C6H4N6O8 --> 3 N2 + 2 H2 + 2 CO2 + 4 CO<p>That beats TNT, which produces between 1 and 3.5 moles of C (as soot) per mole of TNT. With BODAMN's all-gaseous products, the hot CO and H2 can expand after the initial detonation, and then react with O2 whenever they can find one.<p>With excess oxygen available, the hot, pressurized N2 might also form some NO or NO2.