Year: 2009
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: The objective of this experimental study is to compare the effects of various materials obstructing the flow of a blast wave and the ability of the material to reduce the damage caused by the blast. Several methods of energy transfer in blast wave flows are expected including: material interfaces with impedance mismatches, density changes in a given material, internal shearing, and particle fracture. Our hypothesis is that the greatest energy transfer within the obstructing material will yield the greatest mitigation effects to the blast. Sample configurations of foam were varied to introduce material interfaces and filler materials with varying densities and impedances (liquids and powders). The samples were dynamically loaded using a small scale blast produced by an explosive driven shock tube housing gram‐scale explosive charges. The transmitted blast profiles were analyzed for variations in impulse characteristics and frequency components as compared to standard free field profiles. The results showed a rounding effect of the transmitted blast profile for all samples with the effects of the high density fillers surpassing all others tested. These results lead to a conclusion that low porosity, high density materials offer superior attenuation by reducing air blast features and spatially distributing the transmitted wave.
Source: AIP conference proceedings
DOI: 10.1063/1.3295002
Language: English
Subfield: Civil and Structural Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funder: Office of Naval Research
Award: G8876996369
OpenAlex ID: W1581194307