THE USE OF CURRENTS INDUCED WITHIN A CONDUCTING SHIELD FOR RAILGUN PERFORMANCE CONTROL

A conducting containment (shield) is an important part of an electroma gnetic launcher and can ensure the rigidity of the whole construction. The electromagnetic fields, generated by a flowing current, are dissi pated within the shield, with a resultant partial loss of energy. On t he other hand the shield varies the inductance gradient and current fo rm in the launcher circuit. nle containment currents produce magnetic pressure on the rags' exterior thus compensating the inner pressure. T he problem is to neutralize the inner pressure on the rails without an y considerable reduction in the inductance gradient. We have used meth od of numerical experiment for investigating the influence of physical containment characteristics upon the launch process. a three - dimens ional model of a round bore railgun with a moving solid armature has b een studied. Its construction allows the use of various materials with different qualities. The model predicts the disappearance of total ra dial force acting on the,entire rail when the inductance gradient is r educed by 1.5 - 2.5 times.