Performance Enhancements for Explosively Driven Magnetic Flux Compression Generators

Explosively driven magnetic flux compression generators have been extensively researched for dozens of years with little change in fundamental design and overall performance. One of the best understood and commonly used MFCG is the helical generator. These devices are very inefficient (5% to 10%) at converting the chemical energy in explosive into electrical energy. One severe limitation of these devices is the physical driving of the armature to the stator to reduce the generator volume and resulting inductance. HEM Technologies proposes a novel technique to minimize the losses associated with driving an armature in an MFCG. This will allow for smaller armature diameters (larger initial inductance) and less explosives with overall higher generator gain and chemical to electrical energy efficiency. In addition to the potential applications of the technology for the defense services, the developed technology has potential as a compact explosive power source for oil and mineral exploration.