Experimental and Modeling Studies of Stress Wave Propagation and Energy Dissipation Mechanism in Layered Composite Structures

Four composite structures (SiC/UHMWPE/TC4, SiC/TC4/UHMWPE, SiC/UHMWPE/MR/TC4, and SiC/TC4/MR/UHMWPE) were prepared using silicon carbide (SiC) ceramics, ultrahigh molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE), titanium alloy (TC4), and metal rubber (MR). The transmitted waves, failure forms, stress wave propagations, and energy dissipations of the composite structures were studied through Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar (SHPB) tests and numerical simulations. The results show that MR in composite structures can delay, attenuate, and smooth the stress wave, thereby reducing SiC damage. UHMWPE on the back of SiC provides cushioning for SiC, while TC4 on the back of SiC aggravates the damage of SiC. The composite structures with MR mainly dissipate the impact energy by reflecting energy, and the energy dissipation performance is better than that of composite structures without MR. A comprehensive comparison of transmitted waves, damage forms, stress wave propagations, and energy dissipations of the four composite structures shows that SiC/UHMWPE/MR/TC4 structure has the best impact resistance. Increasing the thickness of MR in the composite structures can improve the impact resistance, but there are also stress concentration and interface tensile stress.