Microplasmas have an extensive selection of applications where they can be employed in the synthesis of nano/microparticles. Nano and microparticles are efficiently produced with currents in the mA range. Our flexible microplasma electrochemical synthesis method allows the freedom to create numerous metals, their corresponding…
The thermochemical responses of shock loaded high explosive crystals are linked to localized mechanical dissipation through various inelastic deformation modes. While plastic deformation in crystalline explosives is sometimes mediated by dislocation glide, this mode can be hindered, leading to the activation of other mechanisms….
Weak impacts on high explosives (HE) can give rise to either violent reactions or harmless fracture and material dispersal. Predicting this response or the state of damage in the material remains an unsolved technical challenge. In situ mesoscale insights to anisotropic dislocation-mediated plasticity, phase…
Under plate impact experiments (uniaxial strain) single crystal explosives exhibit elastic-plastic mechanical behavior, however at quasi-static rates (uniaxial stress) they are brittle. We have conducted Split-Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) experiments to bridge the strain rate gap between the two extremes in an effort to…
Understanding and mitigating the formation of hot-spots in energetic materials, e.g. polymer-bonded explosives (PBX), is vital to improving their overall safety. Accidental hot-spot formation can occur when heat generated via plastic dissipation overwhelms the rate of thermal conduction. It is commonly assumed that under…
Shock induced stress measurements in materials are important for designing materials for hypersonic vehicles, accident tolerant nuclear plants, and energetic material based structures. The characterization of mechanical behavior of a material under shock loading requires techniques that can provide nano second resolved information about…