Investigation of Ignition/Combustion Phenomena in a 30mm Liquid Monopropellant Gun

Electrical Sensitization Studies in the Initiation of Liquid Propellant 1846

“…The rise to maximum pressure occasionally would be delayed, and the initiator pressure was lower than if the pressure rise had been prompt. This observation also is made in work on an earlier liquid propellant (13) . No explanation of the variation was con®rmed; it was proposed to be due to``random mixing of decomposed propellant in the vicinity of the center electrode''.…”

“…Studies at Stanford Research Institute (2) in 1956 identi®ed the energy input to a propellant prior to initiation of an arc (called the formative phase) as being critical to achieving robust ignition in earlier liquid propellants. Subsequent photographic studies of this formative phase described thè`f ormation of an insulating vapor sheathing and a concurrent decrease in current'' (3) . This observation was also made in studies of uncon®ned ignition of alkyl nitrate monopropellants in which it was concluded that``Increasing the rate of energy transfer increases the probability of igniting F F F with formative phase energy F F F electrode wear would be drastically reduced'' (4) .…”

“…The initiator chamber and valve access port comprise about 1.4 cm 3 , the vent tube volume is 1.3 cm 3 . The initiator is vented into an empty chamber of 115 cm 3 .…”