Experimental Studies on Sabot Separation at Intermediate Ballistics

Abstract

Experimental investigations have been performed on a 25mm sub-caliber projectile in the intermediate ballistics regime. The main objectives were to visualize the flow interactions at the vicinity of the launch tube with the sabot and projectile and prediction of the sabot petal trajectory within the muzzle blast. Sabots with a rear lifting surface have been designed to achieve rapid separation from the projectile using the muzzle blast energy in order to avoid projectile sabot mechanical interaction. Preliminary results show that there is a lifting-up of the sabot in a parallel fashion with respect to the projectile without any mechanical interactions.