Electromagnetic launcher for heavy projectiles

In this paper, we present the electromagnetic launcher with capacitive power source of 4.8 MJ. Our installation allows studying of the projectile acceleration in railgun in two regimes: with a solid armature and with a plasma piston. The experiments with plasma piston were performed in the railgun with the length of barrel of 0.7-1.0 m and its inner diameter of 17-24 mm. The velocities of lexan projectiles with weight of 5-15 g were in a range of 2.5-3.5 km/s. The physical mechanisms that limit speed of throwing in railgun are discussed.