Material Strength Effect in the Shock Compression of Alumina

Abstract

The Hugoniot elastic limits (HEL) of a high‐density aluminum oxide ceramic (Lucalox) and a slightly lower‐density ceramic (porosity approximately 4%) were determined to be 112±13 and 83±5 kbar, respectively. Above the HEL, the shock‐stress‐volume Hugoniot curves for both materials are offset by 40 kbar or more above their hydrostatic‐pressure‐volume curves. These results indicate that shear stresses with magnitudes of about 30–40 kbar persist in aluminum oxide to shock‐pressure levels of at least 300 kbar.