Supervisor: Dr Paul Hazell

The research will be carried out at the Dynamic Response Group at Cranfield University (Shrivenham).  This Group is devoted to studying the dynamic behaviour of materials using various high strain-rate loading techniques.

The objective of this project is to study the behaviour of shock waves in custom-designed complex laminate systems and in particular, the nature of wave propagation along the in-fibre direction of a composite system.

The main reason for this research is so that we can better understand the response of laminate systems that are subjected to high velocity impacts from such threats as fragmenting munitions and space debris.  The experimental challenge will be to design experiments to fully elucidate the behaviour of the composite that has been subjected to a planar shock wave using both manganin gauges and VISAR (Velocity Interferometer System for Any Reflector); it is envisaged that numerical techniques will be used in this regard.