Abstract: The experimental research on the ignition characteristics of aluminum-potassium perchlorate ignition charge were carried out with CO 2 laser as heat source.The effects of the weight percentage of aluminum in the ignition charge,the radiation intensity,the additive of sulphur powder and the initial temperature of the test sample on ignition delay were investigated experimentally.The expperimental results show that under the conditions of a fixed radiant heat flux,the ignition delay is the shortest,as the weight ratio of alumiinum to potassium perchlorate approaches 50%.The ignition delay decreases sharply by adding 2%(weight)of sulphur into the ignition charge.The ignition delay decreases as the radiant heat flux and the initial temperature increase.There seems to exist a minimum of the radiant heat flux in the case of a fixed weight percentage of aluminum and a given initial temperature.It is impossible to ignite the sample successfully if the heat flux is inferior the minimum.The external energy for ignition is the smallest at the optimal heat flux.An ignition model for aluminum-potassium perchlorate ignition charge is established on the basis of experimental observiations and theoretical analyses.The heterogeneous reaction is regarded as the most important process in the model.The governing equations of the model can be solved numerically.The analytical results correspond to the experimental data satisfactorily.