Characterization of Different Wire Configurations in Underwater Electrical Explosion

• Published in: IEEE transactions on plasma science 2009-01, Vol.37 (1), p.88-98
• Main Authors: Veksler, D., Sayapin, A., Efimov, S., Krasik, Y.E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Character generation; Circuits; Current; Electric currents; Electric wire; Electricity; Energy distribution; Energy use; Exact sciences and technology; Exploding wires; Explosions; Freshwater; Generators; Physics; Physics of gases, plasmas and electric discharges; Physics of plasmas and electric discharges; Plasma; Plasma confinement; plasma generation; Plasma materials processing; Plasma production and heating; Plasma properties; Plasma sources; Plasma transport processes; Plasma waves; Shock waves; shock waves (SWs); switches; Thermodynamics of plasmas; Underwater; Water flow; Water storage; Wire
• ISSN: 0093-3813; 1939-9375
• DOI: 10.1109/TPS.2008.2006176

The results of a study of shock wave (SW) generation by means of underwater electrical wire explosion with different exploding wire configurations and two high-current microsecond and submicrosecond timescale generators are presented. By using aperiodical generator discharge, a ~85% and ~15% of the stored electrical energy was transferred to the exploding wire and energy of the generated water flow, respectively. The energy of the water flow is distributed between its internal (~25%) and kinetic (~75%) energies. It was shown that the exploding wire zigzag configuration, confinement of the SW propagation region, and an increase in the rate of the energy deposition into the exploding wire allow one to increase the SW pressure ges10 times that attained with microsecond timescale straight wire explosion. The averaged thermophysical properties of nonideal and weakly degenerated plasma formed as a result of the wire explosion were obtained and summarized.