Pulsed Power Forming

R&D and application work in the sphere of Pulsed Power Forming (PPF) is well known and has been documented since the 1960's, along with its advantages. Pulsed Power Forming applications, which have been developed at Pulsar Ltd over the last decade, are described in this paper. Special equipment and tools for forming have been designed, developed, and manufactured, utilising pulsed magnetic fields. Theoretical and experimental research has been carried out to determine the magnetic field distribution in certain types of solenoids for diameters up to 600 mm. The software for mechanical pressure simulation and calculation has been carried out. Research and application of forming by electrical discharge into liquid medium have been carried out with higher deformation than it has been attained by the classic processes. Flat forming, cutting, and/or perforating of very thin materials (with thicknesses in the range of 0,1 up to 0,3 mm), such as aluminium, steel, stainless steel, nickel alloys, etc., have been made by applying high magnetic field with elastic medium. In addition, forming and cutting of a steel tube with ~100 mm OD and a wall thickness up to 3 mm have been executed using direct high pulse magnetic field action. Aluminium tubes with OD ~100 mm and a wall thickness less than 0,5 mm have also been similarly processed

Magnetic Pulse Acceleration

The present work is dedicated to describing works in the spheres of simulation, calculation, and experimental results of acceleration by pulsed electromagnetic forces where strain rates of 10,000 - 50,000 s^(-1) are common. The goal is to design a multidisciplinary model that will overcome the shortcomings of normal simulation methods that solve the EM field and then apply the solution in a mechanical analysis. Improved numeric models for virtual simulation of magnetic pulse processes are detailed, along with the pulse-power equipment and a special measurement system developed to verify these models and to determine material property data. These measure both radial velocity and axial speed (collision-point progression) for tube forming and / or welding processes, while logging the pulse current and magnetic field. The results show good a correlation between test and multiphysics model and provide valuable new insights, as well as an extraction of critical parameters by way of a comparison between calculated and measured data for materials such as aluminum alloys, copper, and steel