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Surface Modification of Electromagnetic Railgun Components

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  22 February 2011

M. A. Otooni ,
A. Graf ,
C. Dunham ,
Ian Brown  and
Xiang Yao
M. A. Otooni
Affiliation:
US Army Armament Research, Engineering And Development Center, Picatinny Arsenal, NJ
A. Graf
Affiliation:
US Army Armament Research, Engineering And Development Center, Picatinny Arsenal, NJ
C. Dunham
Affiliation:
US Army Armament Research, Engineering And Development Center, Picatinny Arsenal, NJ
Ian Brown
Affiliation:
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories, Berkeley, CA
Xiang Yao
Affiliation:
Lawrence Berkeley Laboratories, Berkeley, CA
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Abstract

Copper and aluminum used for rail and armature materials in electromagnetic railgun systems undergo severe degradation during the EM gun operation. The extent of this degradation is especially severe in guns operated at high energy levels or designed for repeated firings. In an effort to improve surface properties of the copper rail, armature, and sabot materials, the technique of metal ion implantation using a vacuum arc ion source has been employed. Preliminary tests have been conducted to identify the best implant species to improve spark erosion resistance, scratch resistance and hardness. The implanted species included Al, Ti, Cr, Ni, Ta, Ag, and W. The implantation energy range and dose varied between 100–180 KeV and 0.4 to 2 × 1017 cm-2, respectively . Several analytical techniques were also used to assess the effect of implanted species. These included Rutherford Back Scattering (RBS), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Microhardness Measurements, Spark Erosion and Scratch Testing. It has been tentatively concluded that Ta and Ni implantation of the copper rail substantially improve wear and inhibit arc erosion. There is also sufficient evidence to indicate that implantation of the aluminum armature with Cr and Ta, involving two stages of implantation, will also improve its mechanical and wear properties.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 316: Symposium A – Materials Synthesis and Processing Using Ion Beams , 1993 , 585
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1994

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References

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