Safety analysis of PBX filled munitions under moderate mechanical loading

To increase the insensitivity of modern munitions polymer bonded high explosives (PBX)are used more frequently. During launching and impact of munitions the PBX payload experiences dynamical loading conditions with high pressures and high strain rates in the material. These mechanical loads can create through different dissipation mechanisms so called hot spots with subsequent starting of reaction processes and possible final explosion of the confined high explosive (HE). It is a dynamical mechanical loading under pressures(but still significantly lower than typical shock pressure for direct initiation) and shear stresses. The aim of the present work is to characterize the threshold values for onset of reaction in mechanically loaded HE to create a broad basis of experimental data that can be used to improve the physical modelling of these weak reaction processes. For this purpose we developed an experimental set up, the so called safety threshold testing (STT) device and determined in an extensive test series the loading conditions that lead to the onset of reaction processes. Detailed numerical simulations of the performed tests were used to identify threshold values that can be used in numerical simulations for the assessment of munitionssafety during military operations