Visualization of shockwave behavior in water and gelatin

Abstract

Explosive welding is a popular method that is utilized to bond different types of metals. In particular, with the use of underwater explosive welding technique, the uniform acceleration of a thin plate over a very short flying distance is possible, which makes the technique suitable for the welding of thin plates onto a base plate to modify various properties of the surface of interest for protection against extreme environments. However, the use of water complicates the setup of the assembly, and therefore, in this study, we attempt to use other pressure-transmitting media, such as gelatin, which exhibits shockwave propagation similar to water. The similarity of shockwave propagation of the two materials is confirmed via optical observations utilizing a high-speed camera for two types of explosives. Thus, our findings confirm the viability of the use of gelatin as a pressure-transmitting medium for explosive welding.