Comprehensive Modeling and Numerical Simulation of Interior Ballistic Processes in 120mm Mortar With Systematic Experimental Validation
Abstract
A three-dimensional mortar interior ballistic (3D-MIB) model and code have been developed and stage-wise validated with multiple sets of experimental data in close collaboration between The Pennsylvania State Univ. (PSU) and Army Research and Development Engineering Center. This newly developed MIB model and numerical code realistically simulates the combustion and pressurization processes in various components of the 120mm mortar system. Due to the complexity of the overall interior ballistic processes in the mortar propulsion system, the overall problem has been solved in a modular fashion, i.e., simulating each component of the mortar propulsion system separately. The physical processes in the mortar system are two-phase and were simulated by considering both phases as an interpenetrating continuum. Mass and energy fluxes from the flash tube into the granular bed of M1020 ignition cartridge were determined from a semiempirical technique. For the tail-boom section, a transient one-dimensional two phase numerical code based on method of characteristics (MOC) was developed and validated by experimental test results. The mortar tube combustion processes were modeled and solved by using a two-phase Roe-Pike method with van Leer flux limiter, a fourth order Runge-Kutta scheme, and an adaptive mesh generator to account for the projectile motion. For each component, the predicted pressure-time traces showed significant pressure wave phenomena, which closely simulated the measured pressure-time traces. The experimental data for the flash tube and ignition cartridge were obtained at PSU whereas the pressure-time traces at the breech-end of the mortar tube were obtained from the tests conducted at Yuma Proving Ground (YPG). The 3D-MIB code was also used to simulate the effect of flash tube vent-hole pattern on the pressure-wave phenomenon in the ignition cartridge. A comparison of the pressure difference between primer-end and projectile-end locations of the original and mo
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2008
- Accession Number
- ADA505868
Entities
People
- Henry T. Rand Jr.
- Joseph R. Nimphius
- Kenneth K. Kuo
- Peter J. Ferrara
- Ragini Acharya
Organizations
- Pennsylvania State University