The Utility of Piezoelectric Pressure Waveform in Muzzle Velocity Calculations

Abstract

The article presents the fundamentals of piezoelectric pressure measuring technology in a barrel of a cannon during ammunition firing tests and focus on calculating the muzzle velocity using numerical analysis of piezoelectric pressure waveforms. Pressure measurement method by using piezoelectric transducer is very sensitive to outsource noise. Therefore, ballistic pressure readings are not always reliable especially when the diaphragm of the piezoelectric sensor is covered by burnt propellant remnants. Verification of correct value of pressure reading from piezoelectric system can be performed by comparing muzzle velocities. The paper presents reliability of pressure waveform in muzzle velocity calculations. The experiment took a place in MIAT in Poland during a routine ammunition tests.