Comparative theoretical studies of energetic dodecahydrodiimidazo[4,5-b:4′,5′-e]pyrazine derivatives

The dodecahydrodiimidazo[4,5-b:4′,5′-e]pyrazine derivatives were optimized to obtain their molecular geometries and electronic structures at the DFT-B3LYP/6-31G(d) level. Molecular mechanics (MM) calculations were performed for the title compounds. Detonation properties were evaluated using Kamlet–Jacobs equations based on the calculated density and heat of formation (HOF). The thermal stability of the title compounds was investigated via the energy gaps (ΔELUMO–HOMO) predicted. It is found that there are good linear relationships between detonation velocity, detonation pressure and the number of nitro group. The simulation results reveal that molecules G and H outperform HMX. According to the quantitative standard of energetics and stability as HEDMs (high energy density materials), molecules G and H essentially satisfies this requirement. These results provide basic information for molecular design of novel HEDMs.