Operation of cylindrical array of plasma guns

Journal Article · Sat May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1999 · Fusion Technology

OSTI ID:6424365

Degnan, J H; Baker, W L; Cowan, M Jr; Graham, J D ^[1]; Lopez, E A ^[2]; Price, D W; Ralph, D ^[3]; Roderick, N F ^[4]

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1. Air Force Research Lab., Kirtland AFB, NM (United States). Phillips Research Site
2. Los Alamos National Lab., NM (United States)
3. Maxwell Technologies, Inc., Albuquerque, NM (United States)
4. Univ. of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM (United States)

An experiment to combine many moderate-energy plasma gun discharges into one higher-energy discharge is described. Operated in a cylindrical array were 12 to 24 plasma guns with individual currents of up to 300 kA and individual discharge energies of 25 to 80 kJ. They were directed radially inward. They used separate refractory insulators. Reusable operation was achieved at up to a 1-MJ, 3-MA composite discharge level, and fast photography indicated that the separate discharges combined to form a single, symmetric, cylindrically converging discharge.

• OSTI ID: 6424365
• Journal Information: Fusion Technology, Journal Name: Fusion Technology Vol. 35:3; ISSN 0748-1896; ISSN FUSTE8
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

70 PLASMA PHYSICS AND FUSION TECHNOLOGY
700460* -- Fusion Technology-- Heating & Fueling Systems
Fu
Fuels-- (1992)
MAGNETIC RECONNECTION
OPEN PLASMA DEVICES
OPERATION
PINCH EFFECT
PLASMA FOCUS DEVICES
PLASMA GUNS
PLASMA PRODUCTION
THERMONUCLEAR DEVICES