Electrothermally augmentation of a solid propellant launcher

The augmentation of a ballistic process based on solid propellant burning by an electrothermal energy source is the subject of an experimental and theoretical investigation to obtain improved launching techniques. The plasma jet formation method, the internal ballistics modeling approach, and the experimental testbed are described. Experimental results show the enhanced burning rate of a solid propellant ignited and augmented by the injection of plasma jets. Preliminary experimental evidence of the improved performance of the proposed method over that of conventional ballistics using solid propellant alone is presented. >