Specimen Inertia in high strain rate tensile testing

Abstract

It is well established that measurements of the dynamic mechanical response of materials are susceptible to errors due to the inertia of the specimen, which causes stresses in addition to the intrinsic material strength. A number of authors have derived equations for these stresses in compression experiments; these equations can be used as a guideline for good specimen design. However, no such equations have been presented in the literature for the equivalent effects in tensile experiments. This paper begins by considering and rationalising the equations available for compression, before producing a set of equations which can be used in design of specimens for, e.g., tensile Hopkinson bar experiments.