Propagation of a high explosive air shock wave through different parts of an animal body.

Abstract

Anesthetized rabbits were exposed to high explosive shock waves in a detonation chamber and in a blasting range. A barium titanate crystal pressure transducer inserted into the skull, right thorax cavity, upper part of abdomen and femoral musculature was used for the recording of the pressure pattern of the tissue transmitted blast wave. Relatively homogeneous tissues such as those of the brain, abdomen and thigh musculature were found to modify the incident shock wave only little and are not significantly affected by it. The thoracal structures, especially the lungs on the other hand, due to their elastic and damping properties, cause a marked distortion of the incident wave. Only the main pressure peaks but not the more rapid, smaller pressure oscillations of a complex, multi-peak shock wave are transmitted through the lung. Generally, the peak pressure is but little changed by the passage through a tissue or organ. An exception constitutes the thorax when exposed to a short-lasting pressure peak such as that obtained in the blasting range experiments. In this case the peak pressure was considerably reduced.