Experimental demonstration of an N-turn EML

Abstract

An experimental test series was conducted to compare the L' of a two-turn stacked railgun with the L' of a conventional one-turn railgun. A square-bore railgun configured as a two-turn coil of stacked rails was test fired at three different initial energies, and the L' was compared to the L' from a one-turn railgun of the same bore dimensions firing the same mass projectile at the same three initial energies. All tests were replicated five times. A capacitor pulse power unit was allowed to ring on discharging, making the guns operate as ac devices. Switching took place automatically when the projectile was injected into the rails by pressurized nitrogen. The railguns were equipped with a transparent top plate permitting high-speed photography of the bore during acceleration of the projectile. A description of the tests and the resulting L's is presented.