Effect of Propellant Combustion on Sapphire
Abstract
Sapphire (Al2O3) is the window material of choice for laser beam transmission into the combustion chamber of laser-ignited guns. To evaluate the long-term effects of propellant combustion on an Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ laser window, it is important to know the window temperature during firing. This paper presents temperature data on an Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ sample located in the breech face of the gun where the laser window would be in a laser-ignited 155 mm(M199) cannon. Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ sample is a substrate material of a commercially sold thin-film thermocouple, and is therefore thermally, if not optically, representative of an actual Al/sub 2/O/sub 3/ laser window.References
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