Measurements of Kinetic Energy Loss for Particles Impacting Surfaces

Abstract

Incoming and rebounding particle velocities were measured to within several particle diameters of the impaction surface using laser Doppler velocimetry. Impacts occurred normal to the surface and ranged from 1 m/s, near the threshold for particle bounce, to 100 m/s, well into the plastic damage regime. Monodisperse ammonium fluorescein spheres, 2.6–6.9 μm in diameter, impacted target surfaces including polished molybdenum and silicon, cleaved mica, and a fluorocarbon polymer. The incident kinetic energy recovered on rebound depended on particle size and target composition at low velocity (< 20 m/s), where the adhesion surface energy is important. No dependence on target composition was found at higher velocities where up to half of the impact energy was lost to plastic deformation. Plastic deformation was a significant component of energy loss even at impact velocities near critical velocity. Critical velocities for the onset of bounce decreased with a stronger power-law dependence on particle diameter than expected from classical adhesion theory or the elastic flattening model proposed by Dahneke. This is consistent with kinetic energy loss contributions from both plastic deformation and surface forces. Auxiliary experiments conducted with and without continuous discharge of the impact surface indicated the absence of a significant electrostatic contribution to particle adhesion.