Design of current pulse for electromagnetic railguns

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Xu, Lizhong^{a; *} | Geng, Yanbo^a

Affiliations: [a] Mechanical engineering institute, Yanshan University, China

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author. E-mail: xlz@ysu.edu.cn

Abstract: In this paper, using the differential equation of the armature motion for the electromagnetic Railguns, influences of the driving current distribution on the velocities of the projectile are investigated. Several kinds of the typical energy losses are considered. The influences of the driving current distribution on the transfer efficiency of the railgun system are analyzed. For a given exit velocity of the projectile and rail length, a proper relative time ratio of the pulse currents is determined which corresponds to the optimum system transfer efficiency. The results can be used to design pulse current distribution of the railgun system.

Keywords: Railgun, velocities of the projectile, transfer efficiency, pulse currents, relative time ratio

DOI: 10.3233/JAE-2010-1308

Journal: International Journal of Applied Electromagnetics and Mechanics, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 155-170, 2010