Fundamental study and development of a hydrogen pellet accelerator using a fuseless two-stage plasma-arc-driven electromagnetic railgun
A detailed experimental study has, for the first time, successfully demonstrated the acceleration of frozen hydrogen pellets by means of a fuseless two-stage electromagnetic railgun system. This system consists of a pneumatic hydrogen pellet injector, which freezes and pneumatically pre-accelerates (with high-pressure helium as the propellant gas) cylindrical 1.6-mm-dia. by 1.75-mm-long hydrogen pellets, and a 60-cm-long 1.6-mm-dia. circular-bore electromagnetic railgun. The pellet is introduced into the railgun by means of a coupling piece, and a plasma-arc armature is created from the propellant gas by means of a very unique, fuseless, arc-initiation scheme. (A slightly different, yet equally effective fuseless arc-initiation scheme was employed in a prototype room temperature two stage railgun system.) Railgun-accelerated hydrogen pellet velocities of 1.6 km/s were achieved from pneumatically-accelerated injection velocities of 800 m/s. Streak-camera and current-probe data showed that the plasm-arc armature moves at a velocity proportional to the railgun current, I, and not to the often-quoted I/sup 2/. Insight to this I-dependence has been gained through the use of streak photography and current probes for varying bore geometries and gas pressures.
- Research Organization:
- Illinois Univ., Urbana (USA)
- OSTI ID:
- 5128920
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Hydrogen pellet acceleration with a two-stage system consisting of a gas gun and a fuseless electromagnetic railgun
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ACCELERATORS
CURRENTS
ELECTRIC ARCS
ELECTRIC CURRENTS
ELECTRIC DISCHARGES
ELECTRIC PROBES
ELEMENTS
HYDROGEN
IMPACT FUSION DRIVERS
NONMETALS
PELLET INJECTION
PHOTOGRAPHY
PROBES
RAILGUN ACCELERATORS
STREAK PHOTOGRAPHY
VELOCITY