Coilgun technology, status, applications and future directions at Sandia National Laboratories

Abstract

Sandia National Laboratories has been developing coilgun electromagnetic launcher technology since 1980 and is continuing to advance the technology through hardware development, industry collaboration, and pursuit of new applications. Past projects have included a 35 stage, 200 kJ, 50 mm launcher accelerating a 0.23 kg mass to 1 km/s velocity, a 6 stage, 280 kJ, 140 mm system accelerating a 5 kg mass to 335 m/s, and several studies documenting the potential capabilities of coilgun technology for low and high-speed applications. Projects are currently underway that will continue to advance the technology. One such program is testing high field coils to determine if previous designs can withstand the stress of large numbers of shots. This project is also developing a 30 Tesla coil to allow operation at repetition rates necessary for many applications. At the conclusion of this project we will have valuable engineering data on long-term coil reliability for high velocity applications. We are also working with an industry partner to develop a low-velocity, high-mass electromagnetic launcher for missile launch applications. Through a cooperative research and development agreement, we have constructed a small-scale model, conducted full-scale conceptual designs, and are proceeding to construct a facility for testing full-scale coils and EM effects on missile components. We are developing a coilgun launcher for DoD mortar applications that require launch velocities of -400 m/s of 120 mm, 18 kg payloads, and will extend the weapon's range 40% beyond existing technology while providing significantly improved accuracy with slight modification to the existing rounds. For the mortar application, the program is designed to build both rail and coil systems to identify the strengths and weaknesses of each, and which is most appropriate for the DoD requirements