Behavior of liquid energetic materials under the application of pulsed wire discharge

Abstract

In this study, we used high-speed photography and measurements with a piezo film stress gauge to investigate electrical discharge after the application of an energy discharge to a thin metal wire in a liquid energy material (nitromethane) in a vessel. The objective was to expand the applications of electric discharge fracturing technology in urban areas. Explosion of the metal wire occurred when a high voltage was applied, and a shock wave with relatively low pressure was generated. However, the reaction of the liquid energy material did not happen immediately after the discharge, but an intense explosive reaction gradually occurred after the wire explosion. The reaction products gradually expanded over time into a hemispherical shape at an expansion rate of ～185 m･s ^-1.