Investigation on experimental method of low-impedance materials using modified Hopkinson pressure bar

To increase the detectability of split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) of low-impedance materials, modifications were conducted on traditional SHPB apparatus with a PMMA tube to output transmitted signal, and weak signals were further amplified by semiconductor strain gauges. Experiments on soft rubbers and cushioning foam materials were carried out. In order to analyze the accuracy of the experimental results, the stress equilibrium issues involved in the assumptions of SHPB were investigated. First, by way of re-constructing loading process of incident wave, the stress-strain curve was obtained, along with the stress equilibrium ratio of specimen. Secondly, the influences on the accuracy of stress-strain curves were investigated through the elastic modulus comparisons. And the results illustrate that the bilinear incident wave from experiments can ensure the stress equilibrium deformation of specimen after 2 normalized times, much sooner than ramp incident waves. Moreover, it even facilitates specimen deformation with a constant strain rate. The results confirm that the detectability of the modified SHPB can be down to tens kPa with enough accuracy level.