The response of polyurethane foam to explosively generated shocks

A Plane Wave Lens (PWL) was characterised using a control experiment in which the surface of a copper plate driven by the explosive was measured by laser interferometry. A I D computational model that closely matched the observed output of this experiment was developed. The PWL was then used to shock a polyurethane foam sample sandwiched between two copper plates. Again the surface velocity of the final copper plate was measured. Initial shock compressions were similar to4 GPa rising to similar to40 GPa after reflections between the metal plates. Hydrocode calculations using the previously published Equation of State (EoS) matched the shape of the measured velocity profile reasonably well but did not calculate the shock transit time through the foam correctly. A modified foam EoS which matched both the shape and timing of the observed experimental response has been developed.