100KA, 5000V Solid-State Opening Switch for Inductive Energy Storage

Abstract

Inductive energy stores have demonstrated higher energy storage densities than capacitive energy stores. A limitation in the use of inductive energy stores has been the availability of adequately rated opening switches. A self commutated solid-state switch has been developed for use as an opening device for an inductive energy store. The switch is rated at 100 kA and 5000V and is composed of four identical 25kA switch modules. The charging pulse lengths for the intended application vary from 0.1 to 5 seconds. Efficiency and volumetric power density were optimized. The switch topology is a two stage hybrid consisting of an SCR-FET/SCR-IGBT combination. The switch is designed to charge an inductive energy store and repetitively commutate the current into a railgun load. A 100kA switch module has been built and successfully tested. The theory of operation, circuit topology and test results are given in this paper. Railguns, Electromagnetic launcher, Solid-state switch, Electromagnetic accelerator, Opening switch

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 1993
Accession Number
ADA274993

Entities

People

  • Ed E. Bowles
  • Joshua Kolawole
  • Mark W. Heyse
  • Nolan E. Taconi Jr.

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics
  • Energy and Power Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Air Force Facilities
  • Availability
  • Circuits
  • Data Sets
  • Electromagnetic Guns
  • Energy
  • Energy Storage
  • Power Supplies
  • Semiconductor Devices
  • Semiconductors
  • Storage
  • Thyristors
  • Topology
  • Transistors
  • Varistors
  • Weapons

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Computer Science/Computer Engineering/Data Science/Digital Signal Processing.
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Pulsed Power and Plasma Physics.