BAMO

     BAMO, an acronym for bisazidomethyloxetane, is an energetic plasticizer or binder. BAMO is also called 3,3-bis(azidomethyl)-oxetane; and 3,3-bis(azidomethyl)oxetane. While not an explosive itself, BAMO is one of several of a new class of materials designed to replace inert plasticizers with energetic ones. BAMO finds use as in propellants, plastic explosives, and in gas generating systems like airbags. BAMO will add extra energy to any explosive or propellant, whereas the traditional binders are inert thus sapping explosive energy.

CHEMICALS	APPARATUS
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     Into a 5-L round-bottomed flask prepare a mixture of 1450 g of 3,3-bis(bromomethyl)oxetane in 1720 mL of toluene. Prepare a second solution of 862 g of sodium azide and 14.7 g of tetrabutylammonium bromide in 1600 mL of water. Heat the first mixture to 60 C, and then add the second solution with stirring. Continue heating and stirring for 24 hours. Allow the reaction mixture to cool to room temperature and wash it with three 2000 mL portions of water. The washed mixture is distilled to give pure BAMO. Yield is about 85%. To polymerize the BAMO this procedure can be used: Into a flame dried 5-L round-bottomed flask protected by an inert argon atmosphere prepare a mixture of 14.94 g of butanediol and 1340 mL of dry methylene chloride. Add to this mixture 11.77 g of borontrifluoride-etherate and let the reaction proceed for 1 hour at room temperature. The flask is then cooled to -10 C and 937.78 g of BAMO is added. The flask is allowed to warm to room temperature and is left for three days while the polymerization commences. The reaction is quenched by adding 50 mL of saturated sodium chloride solution. The organic layer is decanted off and shaken with 100 mL of 10% sodium bicarbonate solution in a separatory funnel. The solvent is removed by aspiration and the resulting liquid is poured into 5 L of methyl alcohol to precipitate the polymerized BAMO. Filter to collect the polymer crystals and dry them under vacuum at 30 C.

      Synthesis 2:
Into a 12-L round-bottomed flask prepare a solution of 1270 g of sodium azide and 28 g of sodium hydroxide in 3.8 L of water. Add 1400 g of 3,3-bis(chloromethyl)oxetane and 63 g of tetra-n-butylammonium bromide to the solution. Reflux the mixture, with stirring, at 96-103 C for 24 hours. Allow the mixture to cool to room temperature and decant off the organic layer. Wash the organic layer with three 1 L portions of water and place it in a flask with 25-50 g of anhydrous magnesium sulfate to dry it. Stir the flask for several hours to complete the drying process and pour the liquid through a column containing 400 g of aluminum oxide. The column is rinsed with methylene chloride and the combined with the organic layer. The mixture is gently heated to evaporate the solvent giving pure BAMO. Yield is about 1313 g or 87%. The BAMO may be polymerized as in the procedure given above.

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