Experimental studies of the O/O2/CS2 cw CO chemical laser

Experimental studies of a cw transverse-flow chemical laser are reported. These studies include investigation of gas flow and mixing lengths, densities of chemical species in the reacting flow stream, and gas-additive effects on laser emission. This device has yielded the highest performance yet observed for CO chemical lasers with a specific output power of 65.5 J/g (29.7 kJ/lb) and a minimum chemical efficiency of 21 percent. It was found that additional chemical species are present in the flow stream beyond those predicted by a simple three-reaction model of the chemical kinetics. Gas additives have been found to give increases in total output power, and can also be used to enhance either high or low bands in the output spectrum. (U.S.)