Numerical Analysis of Electrorheological Fluid Based Recoil System for Artillery Gun.

Abstract This research develops and evaluates an electrorheological (ER) fluid recoil reduction system for application in artillery weapon systems. A novel ER fluid was developed using barium titanyl oxalate (BTO) nanoparticles with urea surface treatment dispersed in silicon oil, while also including oleic acid as a dispersant. A total of nine ER fluid samples were fabricated with different concentration and surface treatments yielding the desired rheological, electrical, and sedimentation properties. The 25% urea-coating BTO formulation had the greatest performance by exhibiting 20 kPa yield strength at 3 kV/mm, good dielectric strength, and negligible sedimentation. The optimal fluid was characterized and demonstrated in a tapered orifice ER damper with alumina-coated electrodes, representing the main component in a semi-active recoil mitigation system. The damper was simulated and optimized in various ways to maximize performance in MATLAB, while the complete system was simulated in MATLAB/Simulink and tested for different gun elevation angles. The results demonstrated response from the system of approximately 30% lower recoil displacement, effectively damps for all test conditions, and runs a shorter recoil stroke of 0.702 m. The ER design improves controllability, increases firing stability, and results in better energy efficiency, thus offering strong feasibility for being adopted into next-generation development artillery platforms.