Book Chapter

OPTIMIZING THE RANCHERO COAXIAL FLUX COMPRESSION GENERATOR

LOPEZ, E. A., TASKER, D. G., GOFORTH, J. H., FOWLER, C. M., OONA, H., KING, J. C., MILLER, P. J., LINDEMUTH, I. R., MARTINEZ, E. C., HERRERA, D. H., REINOVSKY, R. E., TABAKA, L. J., STOKES, J., ATCHISON, W. L., TORRES, D.T.

2004

Overview

Ranchero is an explosively driven magnetic flux-compression generator that has been developed over the last four years as a versatile power source for high energy density physics experiments. It is coaxial and comprises a 15 cm diameter armature and a 30 cm diameter stator, each made of aluminum. The length may be varied to suit the demands of each experiment. Thus far, lengths of 0.43 m and 1.4 m have been used. The armature is filled and driven by a high-performance cast explosive, and the ultimate performance of the device is limited by the smoothness of the armature expansion. The armature explosive is initiated on axis by PETN hemispheres spaced at intervals of between 18 mm and 24.5 mm. Each is simultaneously detonated by a slapper detonator system. Armature expansion calculations predicted ripples less than 0.2 mm, which was confirmed in early experiments. Yet, ripples approaching tens of millimeters were observed in some more recent experiments. We will discuss the possible origins of these large ripples and the methods we have used to correct them.

• Publisher: WORLD SCIENTIFIC
• Subject: EXPLOSIVE ULTRA-HIGH PULSED POWER GENERATORS
• ISBN: 9814481971, 9789812560162, 9789812702517, 9812560165, 9789814481977, 9812702512