Can a Blast Wave in a Pipeline Outrun HMX Detonation Velocity?

[Neon Cracklin]

I'm a little rusty on my physics, so here's the hypothetical: Put HMX prima cord in a long pipeline , say 1000m. If you detonate the prima cord and the pipe has a 3" ID, would the blast wave outrun the HMX detonation velocity of 9100 m/s. If you reduced the ID of the pipe, is there a certain point (ID) where the blast wave would move faster than the cord?

 

[Alec Dacyczyn]

Blast wave through... natural-gas/air, or hydrogen/oxygen, or some other mixture in the pipe?

I think it's unlikely that the conflagration within the pipe would ever propagate faster than the 9.1km/s high-explosive detonation. A highly pressurized H₂O₂ mixture might burn at rather impressive speeds. But you'd have a hard time getting anywhere near HE detonation velocities, regardless of the pipe size. (Unless you cheat and use a gas mixture under conditions that cause it to be ignited by the prima cord inside the pipe).

From Wikipedia:

Typical detonation velocities in gases range from 1800 m/s to 3000 m/s. Typical velocities in solid explosives often range beyond 4000 m/s to 10300 m/s