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Updated: Jul 15, 2026
09:50
Preparation and Reactivity of Gasless Nanostructured Energetic Materials
Published on: April 2, 2015
Thermodynamical calculation of metal heating in nanosecond exploding wire and foil experiments
G S Sarkisov1, S E Rosenthal, K W Struve
1Ktech Corporation, Albuquerque, NM 87123, USA. gssarki@sandia.gov
The Review of Scientific Instruments
|May 5, 2007
Summary
This study presents a thermodynamical calculation for metal wire electrical explosions. The method accurately predicts heating, validating experimental voltage measurements for various metals.
Area of Science:
- Physics
- Materials Science
Background:
- Electrical explosion of metals is a complex phenomenon.
- Accurate thermodynamic modeling is crucial for understanding energy deposition and material behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a thermodynamical calculation method for thin metal wire heating during electrical explosions.
- To assess the accuracy of the method against experimental data and simulations.
Main Methods:
- Thermodynamical calculation based on Joule energy deposition.
- Consideration of current waveform, resistivity, and heat capacity temperature dependence.
- Comparison with experimental data from exploding tungsten wires and foils, and simulations.
Main Results:
- The calculation method shows good agreement with experimental data up to the melting point for tungsten wires.
- The technique is validated for various metals including Mo, Ti, Ni, Fe, Al, and Cu.
- The method also demonstrates good agreement with resistive magnetohydrodynamics simulations and exploding foil experiments.
Conclusions:
- The developed thermodynamical calculation is a reliable tool for analyzing electrical wire explosions.
- This technique serves as a valuable method for verifying voltage measurements in such experiments.
- The approach is broadly applicable to different metals and experimental configurations.
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