Experimental characterization of the dynamic failure behavior of mortar under impact loading

Abstract

The failure behavior of mortar under dynamic impact loading is characterized through a series of plate impact experiments. The analysis focuses on the spall strength and the shear stress carrying capacity in different regions of the specimen under normal impact loading. Special attention is paid to the possible existence of a failure wave phenomenon that has been widely recognized as an important failure mechanism for glasses during plate impact. The experiments are designed to allow the strengths of the medium at locations behind and ahead of a possible failure wave front to be analyzed. The diagnostics used include velocity interferometer system for any reflector (VISAR) recording of the free surface velocities of targets and monitoring of the internal stresses via polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) gauges embedded in the specimen. Experiments conducted do not provide evidence for the existence of a failure wave phenomenon for mortar under plate normal impact loading. While the study suggests that a threshold impact stress must be exceeded for failure to occur, a clearly defined failure wave that propagates behind the loading wave is not observed. Instead, a gradual failure process that initiates upon the arrival of the loading wave and progresses thereafter is observed. This gradual failure process in mortar is in contrast to the well-defined failure front and complete loss of tensile strength associated with the failure wave phenomenon reported for glasses. The study also indicates that, under impact involving high levels of input stresses, attenuation of the loading wave occurs as it propagates through the failed medium.