An experimental study of the dynamic response of cylindrical sandwich shells with metallic foam cores subjected to blast loading

The deformation/failure modes and blast resistance of cylindrical sandwich shells comprising two aluminum face-sheets and an aluminum foam core, subjected to air blast loading, were investigated experimentally. Specimens of two different radii of curvature and geometrical configurations, clamped along their peripheries, were studied. A four-cable ballistic pendulum system was employed to measure the impulse imparted to the specimens. Typical deformation/failure modes were classified and analyzed; the effects of face-sheet thickness, core relative density, arrangement of foam core layers of different densities, specimen curvature and mass of charge on the structural response were also examined. The results indicate that both the deformation/failure modes and the structural response of the shells are sensitive to the geometrical configurations and blast impulse. Various failure modes indentation or tearing of the front face-sheet, collapse of the core, severe inelastic deformation or tearing of the rear face-sheet, and failure between the face-sheets and foam core, were observed. The findings are useful for validating theoretical predictions, as well as to guide application of cellular metal sandwich structures for blast protection purposes. (C) 2014 Published by Elsevier Ltd.