This document provides detailed test results of ballistic impact experiments performed on several types of high performance concrete. These tests were performed at the Sandia National Laboratories Shock Thermodynamic Applied Research Facility using a 50 caliber powder gun to study penetration resistance of concrete samples. This document provides test results for ballistic impact experiments performed on two types of concrete samples, (1) Ductal{reg_sign} concrete is a fiber reinforced high performance concrete patented by Lafarge Group and (2) ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) produced in-house by DoD. These tests were performed as part of a research demonstration project overseen by USACE and ERDC, at the Sandia National Laboratories Shock Thermodynamic Applied Research (STAR) facility. Ballistic penetration tests were performed on a single stage research powder gun of 50 caliber bore using a full metal jacket M33 ball projectile with a nominal velocity of 914 m/s (3000 ft/s). Testing was observed by Beverly DiPaolo from ERDC-GSL. In all, 31 tests were performed to achieve the test objectives which were: (1) recovery of concrete test specimens for post mortem analysis and characterization at outside labs, (2) measurement of projectile impact velocity and post-penetration residual velocity from electronic and radiographic techniques and, (3) high-speed photography of the projectile prior to impact, impact and exit of the rear surface of the concrete construct, and (4) summarize the results.
The behavior of a shocked tungsten carbide / epoxy mixture as it expands into a vacuum has been studied through a combination of experiments and simulations. X-ray radiography of the expanding material as well as the velocity measured for a stood-off witness late are used to understand the physics of the problem. The initial shock causes vaporization of the epoxy matrix, leading to a multi-phase flow situation as the epoxy expands rapidly at around 8 km/s followed by the WC particles moving around 3 km/s. There are also small amounts of WC moving at higher velocities, apparently due to jetting in the sample. These experiments provide important data about the multi-phase flow characteristics of this material.
Silica based glasses are commonly used as window material in applications which are subject to high velocity impacts. Thorough understanding of the response to shock loading in these materials is crucial to the development of new designs. Despite the lack of long range order in amorphous glasses, the structure can be described statistically by the random network model. Changes to the network structure alter the response to shock loading. Results indicate that in fused silica, substitution of boron as a network former does not have a large effect on the shock loading properties while modifying the network with sodium and calcium changes the dynamic response. These initial results suggest the potential of a predictive capability to determine the effects of other network substitutions.
The Hypervelocity Impact Society is devoted to the advancement of the science and technology of hypervelocity impact and related technical areas required to facilitate and understand hypervelocity impact phenomena. Topics of interest include experimental methods, theoretical techniques, analytical studies, phenomenological studies, dynamic material response as related to material properties (e.g., equation of state), penetration mechanics, and dynamic failure of materials, planetary physics and other related phenomena. The objectives of the Society are to foster the development and exchange of technical information in the discipline of hypervelocity impact phenomena, promote technical excellence, encourage peer review publications, and hold technical symposia on a regular basis. It was sometime in 1985, partly in response to the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), that a small group of visionaries decided that a conference or symposium on hypervelocity science would be useful and began the necessary planning. A major objective of the first Symposium was to bring the scientists and researchers up to date by reviewing the essential developments of hypervelocity science and technology between 1955 and 1985. This Symposia--HVIS 2007 is the tenth Symposium since that beginning. The papers presented at all the HVIS are peer reviewed and published as a special volume of the archival journal International Journal of Impact Engineering. HVIS 2007 followed the same high standards and its proceedings will add to this body of work.
The dynamic compaction of sand was investigated experimentally and computationally to stresses of 1.8 GPa. Experiments have been performed in the powder's partial compaction regime at impact velocities of approximately 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 km/s. The experiments utilized multiple velocity interferometry probes on the rear surface of a stepped target for an accurate measurement of shock velocity, and an impedance matching technique was used to deduce the shock Hugoniot state. Wave profiles were further examined for estimates of reshock states. Experimental results were used to fit parameters to the P-Lambda model for porous materials. For simple 1-D simulations, the P-Lambda model seems to capture some of the physics behind the compaction process very well, typically predicting the Hugoniot state to within 3%.