Publications
Progress towards a 200 MW electron beam accelerator for the RDHWT/Mariah II Program
The Radiatively Driven Hypersonic Wind Tunnel (RDHWT) program requires an unprecedented 2-3 MeV electron beam energy source at an average beam power of approximately 200MW. This system injects energy downstream of a conventional supersonic air nozzle to minimize plenum temperature requirements for duplicating flight conditions above Mach 8 for long run-times. Direct-current electron accelerator technology is being developed to meet the objectives of a radiatively driven Mach 12 wind tunnel with a free stream dynamic pressure q=2000 psf. Due to the nature of research and industrial applications, there has never been a requirement for a single accelerator module with an output power exceeding approximately 500 kW. Although a 200MW module is a two-order of magnitude extrapolation from demonstrated power levels, the scaling of accelerator components to this level appears feasible. Accelerator system concepts are rapidly maturing and a clear technology development path has been established. Additionally, energy addition experiments have been conducted up to 800 kW into a supersonic airflow. This paper will discuss progress in the development of electron beam accelerator technology as an energy addition source for the RDHWT program and results of electron beam energy addition experiments conducted at Sandia National Laboratories.