Shaped charge with wave shaping lens
AssigneeWestern Atlas International, Inc.
InventorManmohan S. Chawla
Life of this patent
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Abstract
An improved shaped charge for generating a jet. A lens shaped waveshaper is positioned within the explosive material of a shaped charge to modify the shape of the divergent detonation wave into a planar wave or a converging wave. The waveshaper is formed with a low sound speed material having a high index of refraction. By reshaping the detonation wave, the acceleration of the shaped charge liner is increased, and the penetration depth and hole size of the jet can be increased. The shaped charge operates more efficiently, thereby requiring less explosive material than a conventional shaped charge.
Claims7
A shaped charge responsive to a detonator for initiating a material penetrating jet, comprising:
- an explosive material formed about an axis and activatable by the detonator to create a diverging detonation wave;
- a shaped liner having a curved surface, in an axial cross-section, proximate to said explosive material, wherein said liner defines a hollow space, and wherein said liner is collapsable about said hollow space to form the material penetrating jet;
- and
- a solid lens proximate to said explosive material for shaping said diverging detonation wave before said detonation wave contacts said liner, said solid lens means shapes said diverging detonation wave to form an inwardly converging wave toward said axis, said converging wave having a curvature substantially equal to the curved surface of said liner so that the converging wave impacts substantially all of the curved surface at the same time, wherein said solid lens means comprises a low sound speed metallic material having a sound speed that is approximately one quarter of the detonation speed of said explosive material.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.