Efficiency of the shock wave generation caused by underwater electrical wire explosion

Abstract

Shearing interferometry, together with shadowgraph and Schlieren photography techniques, has been applied for the visualization of the cylindrical water flow behind the shock wave generated by high-power 6 GW nanosecond time-scale underwater electrical discharge. The flow was visualized during the first microsecond of the wire explosion process in the region between the expanding exploding wire discharge channel and the shock wave. The optical methods, combined with the hydrodynamic calculation, enable an accurate estimation of the energy transferred from the discharge to the water flow. The estimated efficiency of the transformation of the electrical dissipated energy to the mechanical energy of the generated compressed water flow is ∼15%.