Experimental demonstration and simulation of a dual-stage solid propellant gun concept

A novel method for the acceleration of projectiles to hypervelocity is presented. The method utilizes two solid grain propellant charges which are operated in tandem in a dual-stage mode. The second charge is encapsulated into a massive case which is placed adjacent to the projectile. This stage is ignited at a time delay, after the first charge. Experiments done on a 13-mm barrel demonstrate the feasibility of this acceleration scheme. Zero-dimensional simulations predict significant improvement over the single-stage gun, using the same maximal pressure as imposed by conventional barrels. A specific calculation of a 0.48-kg projectile accelerated in a 4.4-m-long, 60-mm barrel predicts velocities over 2500 m/s. (Author)