A numerical model for ETC gun interior ballistics applications

A multidimensional, transient, fluid dynamic model, BISON, has been developed to study the interior ballistic processes in an electrothermal-chemical (ETC) gun. The model solves the full Navier-Stokes equations and uses a high-order numerical scheme to integrate the governing equations. Most of the important physical processes pertinent to ETC gun interior ballistics, including multiphase flow, chemical reaction, and plasma dynamics, are incorporated in the model. Examples of model applications to study basic ETC gun phenomena, such as plasma jet penetration and real gun design component analyses, are presented and discussed. The modeling results not only compare well with experimental data but also provide a better understanding of the interior ballistics physics. The multidimensional model BISON proves to a very useful tool for ETC gun interior ballistics simulations.<>