Cartridge having high pressure light gas
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A cartridge comprising a housing carrying a projectile, the housing including:
- a sealed container structure including;
a mixture comprising an oxidizer gas and helium gas at a pressure of at least several hundred atmospheres, a fuel having molecules including hydrogen atoms, a solid propellant, a front wall structure confining a mass in the sealed container structure from the projectile;
the propellant, fuel, oxidizer gas, helium gas, sealed container structure and front wall structure being positioned, arranged and including materials so that in response to ignition within the sealed container structure, the propellant, fuel, helium gas and oxygen from the oxidizer gas are further pressurized and mixed to increase the pressure on the front wall structure to a sufficiently high value to burst the front wall structure so a gas mixture including the fuel, helium gas and oxygen having a pressure substantially higher than the pressure of the mixture in the sealed container structure is applied to the projectile to accelerate the projectile in a barrel in which the projectile is located.
3 Assignments
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
A cartridge for accelerating a projectile includes a light gas pressurized in a sealed container to 5,000-10,000 psi. Upon ignition in the sealed container, a gas mixture having a low or intermediate molecular weight and a high or low energy density is applied as a high sound speed gas to accelerate the projectile to speeds of above about 2.4 km/sec.
57 Citations
41 Claims
-
1. A cartridge comprising a housing carrying a projectile, the housing including:
a sealed container structure including;
a mixture comprising an oxidizer gas and helium gas at a pressure of at least several hundred atmospheres, a fuel having molecules including hydrogen atoms, a solid propellant, a front wall structure confining a mass in the sealed container structure from the projectile;
the propellant, fuel, oxidizer gas, helium gas, sealed container structure and front wall structure being positioned, arranged and including materials so that in response to ignition within the sealed container structure, the propellant, fuel, helium gas and oxygen from the oxidizer gas are further pressurized and mixed to increase the pressure on the front wall structure to a sufficiently high value to burst the front wall structure so a gas mixture including the fuel, helium gas and oxygen having a pressure substantially higher than the pressure of the mixture in the sealed container structure is applied to the projectile to accelerate the projectile in a barrel in which the projectile is located.- View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14)
-
15. A cartridge comprising
a housing carrying a projectile, the housing including: - a sealed container structure including a first gas at a pressure of at least several hundred atmospheres, a fluid reactant sealed to a pressure of at least several atmospheres, the gas including an oxidizer gas and at least 50% by mole fraction of helium, a solid propellant, a diaphragm structure confining the gas in the sealed container structure from the projectile, the propellant, gas, reactant, sealed container structure and diaphragm structure being positioned, arranged and having constituents so that in response to ignition of constituents in the sealed container structure the first gas and the reactant are mixed and further pressurized to increase the pressure on the diaphragm means to a sufficiently high value to burst the diaphragm structure so there is formed a light gas mixture including the gas and reactant in gaseous form having a molecular weight below about 12, the light gas mixture having a pressure substantially higher than the pressure of the mixture in the sealed container structure and being applied to the projectile to accelerate the projectile in a barrel in which the projectile is located.
- View Dependent Claims (16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41)
Specification