First experiments with the modular augmented staged electromagentic launcher (MASEL)

Summary form only given. Augmented electromagnetic accelerators are advanced mass accelerators which are using an additional magnetic field to support the launching process. In conventional electromagnetic accelerators the electrical current through the rails and the armature has to be very large in order to achieve a sufficiently high electromagnetic force which accelerates the projectile. Due to magnetic flux diffusion effects, the electrical current is concentrated on the back of the armature, resulting in high current concentration and therefore heat generation. Together with the sliding contact between the armature and the rails, abrasive wear of the materials can occur and cause a transition from the solid contact to a plasma contact, which further increases the temperature and the wear of the rails/armature interface.