Shock Hugoniot and High Strain-Rate Viscoelastic Behavior of a Phenolic Polymer

We investigate the shock behavior of a phenolic polymer using experiments, finite element and classical molecular dynamics (MD) simulation. Plate impact experiments are used to produce transient pressure states up to ~1.2 GPa. The dynamic stress equalization on plate impact is fit to a viscoelastic model in the CTH hydrocode that accounts for the temperature dependence of the phenolic β-transition, which is determined by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) based on experimental measurements of shear modulus as a function of temperature and strain rate. This model is used to refine an estimate of the dynamic spall strength for the phenolic and to validate the shock Hugoniot measurement. The results are compared to MD simulations of crosslinked phenolic and found to be in reasonable agreement when a ReaxFF potential is used with a constant stress Hugoniostat, establishing a baseline for investigating higher-pressure shock behavior of phenolic polymers. Sandia National Laboratories is a multimission laboratory managed and operated by National Technology & Engineering Solutions of Sandia, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Honeywell International Inc., for the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration under contract DE-NA0003525.