Structure of weak shock waves in 2-D layered material systems

Abstract

Shock waves in homogeneous materials in the absence of phase transitions are understood to have a one-wave structure. However, upon loading of a layered heterogeneous material system a two-wave structure is obtained––a leading shock front followed by a complex pattern that varies with time. This dual shock-wave pattern can be attributed to material architecture through which the shock wave propagates, i.e. the impedance (and geometric) mismatch present at various length scales, and nonlinearities arising from material inelasticity and failure. The objective of the present paper is to provide a better understanding of the role of material architecture in determining the structure of weak shock waves in 2-D layered material systems. Normal plate-impact experiments are conducted on 2-D layered material targets to obtain both the precursor decay and the late-time dispersion. The particle velocity at the free surface of the target plate is measured by using a multi-beam VALYN VISAR. In order to understand the effects of layer thickness and the distance of wave propagation on elastic precursor decay and late-time dispersion several different targets with various layer and target thicknesses are employed. Moreover, in order to understand the effects of material inelasticity both elastic–elastic and elastic–viscoelastic bilaminates are utilized. The results of these experiments are interpreted by using asymptotic techniques to analyze propagation of acceleration waves in 2-D layered material systems. The analysis makes use of the Laplace transform and Floquet theory for ODE’s with periodic coefficients [Asymptotic solutions for wave propagation in elastic and viscoelastic bilaminates. In: Developments in Mechanics, Proceedings of the 14th Mid-Eastern Mechanics Conference, vol. 26, no. 8, pp. 399–417]. Both wave-front and late-time solutions for step-pulse loading on layered half-space are compared with the experimental observations. The results of the study indicate that the structure of acceleration waves is strongly influenced by impedance mismatch of the layers constituting the laminates, density of interfaces, distance of wave propagation, and the material inelasticity.