Mechanisms of fragmentation of aluminum-tungsten granular composites under dynamic loading
/ Authors
/ Abstract
Numerical simulations of aluminum (Al) and tungsten (W) granular composite rings under various dynamic loading conditions due to explosive loading were performed. Three competing mechanisms of fragmentation were observed: a continuum level mechanism generating macrocracks with a size scale comparable to the case width, a mesoscale mechanism generating voids and microcracks at the unbonded Al/W interfaces due to tensile strains, and mesoscale jetting due to the development of large velocity gradients between the W particles and surrounding Al. These mesoscale mechanisms can be used to tailor the size of the fragments (macro to mesoscale) by selecting an appropriate initial mesostructure for a given loading condition.
Journal: Applied Physics Letters
DOI: 10.1063/1.4711768