Explosively Loaded Metallic Cylinders. I

Publisher Website
Google Scholar
Abstract
Recent experiments using thin‐walled metal cylinders internally loaded with high explosives have been performed in an effort to show that the casing velocity vector bisects the angle formed by the expanding cylinder and the undisturbed portion. This relation, which was first derived by Sir Geoffrey Taylor, can be expressed by the equation δ=θ/2, where δ is the angle between the velocity vector and the normal to the undisturbed casing, and θ is the angle formed by the normals to the moving and undisturbed portions of the casing. Although this relation forms a part of most theories pertaining to the acceleration of thin liners by high explosives, direct experimental verification of the relation has been difficult. In an attempt to verify Taylor's relation, values of δ were determined by inspecting the fragmentation patterns produced on cylindrical witness targets surrounding the charges. The values of δ determined in this manner are within the range of recent measurements by Singh using similar charges. Values of θ were independently determined from Kerr Cell photographs of the expanding cylinders. The experimental observations are in good agreement with the relation δ=θ/2.