Electromagnetic launcher (EML) performance repeatability has been identified as a potential development issue for severa1 years. Investigation of this issue has been difficult since an EML that is powered on a relatively continuous basis to provide long duration operation has not been available. A battery charged capacitor power system has enabled long duration, six to seven seconds, EML experiments. This paper provides a summary of an experiment to investigate EML launch-to-launch performance consistency. A series of 8 ten shot bursts each separated by 15 to 30 minutes was performed in one day using a single set of bore materials. The experiment set-up is described, the experimental results discussed, and key parameters which could affect performance repeatability are identified,.
The operation of a Solid Propellant Electrothermal Chemical (SPETC) launcher was tested extensively in support of the US Army Space and Strategic Defence Command (USA SSDC) requirement for integrated field tests of components for a proposed Hypervelocity Weapon System (HVWS). Efforts were undertaken to translate ballistic results obtained earlier with a 105 mm SPETC launcher at Soreq NRC Israel for field use. A 105 mm firing fixture was used in the study. Forty-nine field firings were carried out in the 105 mm launcher without a single failure of the electrothermal fixture. Controlled pressure US time profiles and velocities in the range of 1800 -2030 m/s were obtained at pressures of the order of 450-550 MPa and accelerations of u p to 64 kgee. This was achieved using projectile masses from 3.8 -5.2 kg and various power pulses u p to 1.8 MJ. An ensemble of 14 firing experiments indicates that the SPETC process is highly repeatable. The interior ballistic process is smooth and applicable to high gee sabot separation tests. The SPETC launcher was found to be very reliable, robust and'flexible with a high potential for future weaponization.
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