Preliminary Study of Coupling Electromagnetic Energy to Primasheet-1000 Explosive

Abstract

It is anticipated that the introduction of high currents will increase the energy content of the combustion gases in the vicinity of the detonation front through ohmic heating. This increased energy should then lead to an increase in the detonation velocity. The approach is to transfer the stored electrical energy from a 160-kJ (5.5-kV) capacitor bank into the conductive zone behind the detonation front of an explosive reaction. The power supply employs a 6.5-kV, 0.010-F, 200-kJ capacitor bank. The explosive portion of the experimental apparatus consists of two copper plates (2.54 cm wide 50 cm long 1.27 cm thick) separated by a 0.1-, 0.2-, or 0.3-cm layer of Primasheet-1000 explosive. Upon initiation of the Primasheet-1000 explosive, an explosive switch allows the energy stored in the pulsed power assembly to be transferred through the copper plates and into the conducting reaction zone of the detonation front. Advanced diagnostics are used to image the advancing detonation front and to measure detonation velocity. Initial results show that there was an increase of ~4.2% in the detonation velocity observed in 0.1-cm-thick layers and ~2.6% enhancement in 0.2-cm-thick layers of Primasheet-1000 while inputting the electric energy into the reaction zone. No detonation velocity enhancement was observed in 0.3-cm-thick layers of Primasheet-1000 explosive.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 01, 2013
Accession Number
ADA588875

Entities

People

  • Charles Hummer
  • Eugene Summer
  • Kevin L. McNesby
  • Richard Benjamin
  • Thuvan Piehler
  • Vincent Boyle

Organizations

  • United States Army Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Counter IED
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Blast
  • Cameras
  • Detonations
  • Electric Power
  • Electromagnetic Fields
  • Electromagnetic Radiation
  • Explosions
  • Explosives
  • Fiber Optics
  • Ignition
  • Magnetic Fields
  • Materials
  • Optical Fibers
  • Power
  • Power Supplies
  • Sheet Explosives
  • Streak Cameras

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Electrical Engineering
  • Rocket Propulsion.
  • Semiconductor Device Technology