Shock wave-loaded plates

The present paper reports on modeling, numerical simulation, and experimental investigation of plates subjected to impulsive loading. The kinematical hypothesis used for the theoretical description of the transient response includes transverse shear deformations, rotary inertia, and geometrical nonlinear effects. The material modeling accounts for elastic–plastic behavior, isotropic and kinematical hardening, and strain rate sensitivity. The numerical simulation of the transient inelastic vibrations is performed using isoparametric finite elements. Both the Chaboche and the Bodner–Partom viscoplastic constitutive laws are used to trace the evolution of the material characteristics in the framework of a layered shell model. The theoretical and numerical developments are checked by experimental investigations of thin steel plates subjected to shock waves. These experiments are performed in a shock tube with various impact periods and loading histories. The topics addressed in this report include (a) the correlation of experimental and simulated transient inelastic response using the Chaboche and Bodner–Partom models, (b) the sensitivity of the predicted structural response to variations of the material parameters identified on the basis of uniaxial tension tests, (c) the effect of the transverse shear stress distribution on the local evolution of the material behavior and on the global dynamic response, (d) the evolution of deflections, stresses, and plastic zones under blast loading conditions.