MATERIALS FOR EML CONDUCTING RAILS WITH EMPHASIS ON TUNGSTEN COATED COPPER

THE INTEGRITY OF EML CONDUCTING RAILS IS A CRITICAL ISSUE; MELTING OR ABLATION DEGRADE BALLISTIC PERFORMANCE AND GUN DURABILITY. THE SEVERE RAIL ENVIRONMENT IS DUE TO PLASMA ARMATURE RADIATION, OHMIC HEATING, CONVECTION, MAGNETIC AND PRESSURE FORCES, AND FRICTION. THIS RESEARCH WILL DEVELOP, TEST, AND DEMONSTRATE AN OPTIMUM DUALMATERIAL CONDUCTING RAIL SYSTEM: A HIGH MELT TEMPERATURE COATING (TENTATIVELY TUNGSTEN) ON A HIGH HEAT SINK CAPABILITY SUBSTRATE MATERIAL (TENTATIVELY COPPER ALLOY). EMPHASIS WILL BE ON IDENTIFICATION OF THE BEST COATING MATERIALS AND APPLICATION PROCESS, AND THIS WILL BENEFIT FROM SUCCESSFUL TUNGSTEN COATED HYPERVELOCITY GAS GUN BARREL EXPERIENCE. BOTH CHEMICAL VAPOR AND PLASMAS SPRAY DEPOSITION PROCESSES WILL BE EVALUATED. PHASE I WILL INCLUDE ENVIRONMENT QUANTIFICATION, MATERIAL AND PROCESS CANDIDATE SELECTION, SPECIMEN FABRICATION AND CHARACTERIZATION, AND SCREENING TEST DESIGN. PHASE II WILL INCLUDE RAIL SPECIMEN SCREENING TESTS (TENTATIVELY IN A SHORT RAIL GUN TEST APPARATUS POWERED BY AN AVAILABLE 1.25 MJ CAPACITOR POWER SUPPLY), RESULTS ANALYSIS, AND RAIL DESIGN AND FABRICATION FOR REPRETITIVE-FIRE APPLICATION.