Experimental Microwave Heating System for a 120-mm Munition

摘要

This report details an experimental microwave heating system designed for usewith a 12O-mm munition. The system operates at 2.45 GHz, using slotted waveguide radiators. The reported temperature measurements show relatively uniform heating of a surrogate 12O-mm munition. Experiments at the Army Research Laboratory have shown that a munition's propellant heated for a few minutes by microwaves to 49 deg C has characteristics similar to those of propellant that has been temperature conditioned to 49 deg C for several hours. In particular, this heating increases the munition's muzzle velocity about 5 percent, thus enhancing its performance.