High-efficient electromagnetic launch system using energy recovery

The power supply is a critical component in the development of systems for electric armament. The energy and power density of pulsed power supplies have to be increased for their successful integration in weapon platforms. In this paper, the related issue of efficient use of available energy is addressed. In the theoretical limit, the launch efficiency for rail accelerators amounts to 50%. The remaining 50% is stored in the rail accelerator as magnetic energy. In practice, part of the energy input into the breech is lost due to Joule heating of the rails and armature, lowering the launch efficiency to about 30%. A doubling appears to be feasible when practical systems can be developed in which energy losses are minimized. Then, a reduction of the weight and volume of the power supply can be expected. Recovery of the magnetic energy stored in the rail accelerator and reduction of the ohmic losses can be achieved by application of an augmented rail accelerator with rail cooling. In addition, the application of field augmentation results in lower electrothermal action requirements for the components, especially the armature. In this paper, the results of simulations of a pulse forming network for repetitive launch applications are presented. The efficiency of the proposed system is compared with a launch system using DES.