Dynamic plastic response of aluminum at temperatures approaching melt

This study uses the pressure-shear plate impact configuration to investigate the rate-controlling mechanisms of the dynamic plastic response of aluminum at strain rates of approximately 10(6) s(-1) at temperatures that approach melt. To achieve this combination of high strain rates and high temperatures, pressure-shear plate impact experiments are being conducted with modifications introduced by Frutschy([1]) to enable the experiments to be conducted at high temperatures. So far, the shearing resistance has been measured at temperatures up to 906 K (632 degrees C), which is 81 pct of the melting temperature at the concurrent pressure. Several approaches are being explored to obtain even higher fractions of the melting temperature, possibly exceeding it.