Impact initiation of a semi-confined high explosive target by hypervelocity debris

An experimental and numerical study has been performed, where initiation of a high explosive target by high velocity debris from a tungsten sphere was investigated. The target consisted of two spaced plates with the high explosive mounted directly behind the inner plate. Both the impact velocity and target obliquity have been varied to find impact conditions that lead to initiation of the high explosive. Numerical simulations were used to estimate critical impact velocities for a series of impact obliquities. The critical impact velocity was found to increase with increasing obliquity, presumably due to the reduction in residual velocity of the debris cloud, and with the reduction of the effective diameter of the debris cloud as the obliquity increases above 30°. • Presents experiments showing the critical impact conditions leading to initiation. • Complements experimental results with numerical simulations. • Suggests an expression relating the critical impact velocity to obliquity.