Laser-accelerated flyer system for investigating reactions in Ni-Al mixtures

Abstract

Experiments using a laser-accelerated flyer impact system were conducted on various forms of nickel-aluminum over a range of velocities in attempt to characterize the processes leading to reaction initiation and product formation. The laser-accelerated flyer system consists of an Nd:YAG, 3-Joule, 1064- nm seeded laser, beam shaping optics, recovery chamber, and velocity interferometry diagnostics. Using various flyer materials, impact velocities up to 1.4 km/sec have been measured. The laser-accelerated flyer system was used to conduct impact experiments on Ni-Al powder compacts, Ni-Al vapor-deposited foils, and single Ni-Al interface configurations. Subsequently, post-mortem characterization was performed to identify the processes that lead to reaction initiation and products formed in the various Ni-Al configurations. © 2012 American Institute of Physics.