Magnetic flux penetration of an aluminum liner during working fluid compression

Conference · Sat Dec 31 04:00:00 EST 1994

OSTI ID:42943

Bell, D E; Hussey, T W ^[1]

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1. Phillips Lab., Kirtland AFB, NM (United States). High Energy Plasma Physics Div.

The Phillips Laboratory WFX program is a research effort to study the adiabatic compression of a hot hydrogen gas using an electromagnetically imploded solid liner. The potential uses for the megabar pressures obtained include antiproton-catalyzed microfission, magnetized target fusion, hypervelocity projectile acceleration, and equation of state studies. This numerical and analytic study explores the vaporization of an aluminum solid liner during its implosion under the influence of a 5.3 MJ capacitor discharge, and the subsequent magnetic flux penetration into the working fluid. If sufficient magnetic flux diffuses through the liner, then the working fluid is compressed by the magnetic flux rather than the liner. This is undesirable since compression by the magnetic flux will cause the onset of a shock wave within the working fluid. A study of the dynamics of the solid liner was performed with both 1-D and 2-D radiation MHD simulations, which included a careful treatment of the electrical conductivity near the phase transitions. A simple analytic model was developed for determining the effect of the flux penetration on the working fluid compression. The results of this model were used to predict the minimum working fluid density required in order to ignore the flux penetration.

• OSTI ID: 42943
• Report Number(s): CONF-940604--; ISBN 0-7803-2006-9
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

66 PHYSICS
70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
ALUMINIUM
ANALYTICAL SOLUTION
COMPRESSION
COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION
EVAPORATION
IMPLOSIONS
LINERS
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS
PLASMA PRODUCTION
RESEARCH PROGRAMS
USES
WORKING FLUIDS