SCALING PROBLEMS IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF FREE IMPLOSIVE FORMING OF ROOTS-BLOWER IMPELLERS

SUMMARY Practical possibilities of utilizing the method of free, i.e. without tools, implosive forming of complex tubular profiles are demonstrated using Roots-blower impellers as an example. The problem of the theoretical prediction of the magnitude and geometry of the required explosive charge is solved by employing the technique of dimensional analysis. General application of the analysis to explosive forming and the treatment of the investigated case are discussed in detail. It is shown that the technique can be extended to other components of complex shapes.