Analytical Prediction of Hole Diameter in Thin Plates Due to Hypervelocity Impact of Spherical Projectiles

A first-principles-based model is presented for calculating the hole diameter resulting from the normal hypervelocity impact of a spherical aluminum projectile on a thin aluminum plate. One-dimensional shock theory is used to predict the creation and attenuation of Hugoniot pressures along the plate surface. Pressures are translated into the plate thickness by calculating intersecting positions of advancing shock fronts and centered-fan rarefaction waves. The radial position at which the shock pressure equals a predetermined value is defined to be the hole diameter. The model was calibrated by determining this critical value for aluminum-an-aluminum impacts using several hundred data points. A residuals analysis indicated some inherent problems with the model. Two empirical factors were added to account for thin plate and two-dimensional shock dissipation effects. The predictions of the adjusted model are shown to compare well with predictions of several empirical hole diameter models.