Effect of Body Cross Section on Projectile Aerodynamic Performance With Application to Electromagnetic (EM) Guns
Abstract
The most effective bore cross-section geometry for electromagnetic (EM) guns may differ significantly from the circular cross section of conventional guns. The geometry of the bore cross section will influence the shape of the armature/subprojectile launch package. For certain applications, a noncircular cross section may provide payload packaging benefits which have not been considered previously for conventional circular cross-section guns. Whether these benefits can be fully realized depends, in part, on the aerodynamic performance of these geometries in free flight. The current study considers the aerodynamics of chemical energy (CE)-type munitions to determine whether there are potential aerodynamic benefits for noncircular cross-section geometries compared with conventional circular cross-section bodies. The study compares the aerodynamic drag and static stability of both circular and noncircular geometries using sophisticated computational aerodynamic predictive tools to determine the potential aerodynamic benefits.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 2001
- Accession Number
- ADA389409
Entities
People
- Paul Weinacht
Organizations
- United States Army Research Laboratory