Abstract:
The dynamic response of a commercially important epoxy resin (RTM 6) has been
studied using plate impact experiments in the impact velocity regime of 80–960
m/s. Both longitudinal and lateral manganin stress gauges were employed to study
the development of orthogonal components of stress both during and after shock
arrival. In light of recent work raising doubts about the interpretation of
lateral gauge data, lateral response within the RTM 6 resin was also used to
investigate the physical phenomena being measured by the embedded lateral
gauges. US–uP and rX–uP Hugoniot relationships were in good agreement with data
for similar polymer materials from the literature. Derivation of shear strength
behaviour both during and after shock arrival showed evidence of strengthening
behind the shock front, attributed to compression of the cross-linked epoxy
resin polymer chains. Comparison of the change in lateral stress behind the
shock to the behaviour of an epoxy resin possessing a similar US–uP Hugoniot
from the literature showed a different response; likely attributable to enhanced
cross-linking present in this second resin. This result suggests that the
embedded lateral gauges were, at least in part, measuring a physical response
behind the shock within the resin. A Hugoniot elastic limit of 0.88 ± 0.04 GPa
was derived and found to be of the same order of magnitude as results found
elsewhere for similar m
