As a preliminary study on the electromagnetic propulsion, a 25 mm square-bore railgun with a travel-length of 1940 mm was fabricated and tested. Electrical circuit parameters of the PFN (Pulse Forming Network) and the railgun were determined from the discharges of the PFN with the railgun short-circuited at the breech or muzzle. Launch experiments were conducted to verify the basic performance of the constructed railgun. The aluminum armature of 30 gram in mass was accelerated up to 2000 m/s with a peak current of about 700 kA by simultaneous discharging of 8 capacitor bank modules. Contact problems and gouging phenomena were observed. Circuit equations coupled with the armature motion were modeled. By introducing appropriate friction forces the model showed a good prediction on the armature motion. This small scale railgun gave useful information for the preparation and design of the larger railgun with a medium caliber to be studied subsequently.

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-A 150 kJ compact capacitive pulsed power system (CCPPS) capable of delivering electrical energy into an electrothermal chemical (ETC) gun on a vehicle has been studied. The CCPPS provides pulsed electrical energy into a capillary plasma injector which generates plasma of tens of thousands °K in temperature and has a nonlinear resistance depending on the current. The design requirements of the CCPPS are as follows: the maximum power of 250 MW, the pulse width of about 0.6 ms, the volume of no more than 0.5 cubic meter, the efficiency of energy transfer over 80 % and the repetition rate of 4~5 times per minute. The constructed CCPPS is composed of four 37.5 kJ capacitor bank modules in parallel to make a trapezoid pulse shape and to satisfy the design requirements. Each module is designed to achieve high reliability, safety, efficiency and energy density to endure severe operating conditions. The results of the performance test on the CCPPS using a 120 mm ETC gun are described.

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