Assessment of acoustic shock wave resistance of SiO2 (α-cristobalite): A potential material for aerospace and defense industry applications

Abstract

In the present research article, the acoustic shock wave-resistant efficiency of silica microparticles (SiO2-α-cristobalite)) has been experimentally evaluated in terms of structural, optical and morphological stability against the impact of shock waves. The required SiO2 particles were synthesized by a hydrothermal method which was subjected to a different number of shock pulses such as 200,400 and 600 with Mach number 2.2. Shocked samples’ structural, morphological and optical stabilities have been evaluated by utilizing a powder X-ray diffractometer (PXRD), Ultraviolet–Diffuse reflectance spectrometer (DRS) while the surface morphological analysis has been scrutinized by the field emission scanning electron microscopic technique (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy techniques are utilized to evaluate oxidation states and crystallographic structural stability. The above-mentioned analytical techniques provide convincing proofs whereby the synthesized SiO2 particles are authentically proven to possess outstanding structural, optical and morphological stability against the impact of shock waves. The implicated experimental results and the arguments strongly suggest that the SiO2 particles are suitable candidates for aerospace and defense industry applications due to their outstanding shock wave-resistant properties.