Expansion of cylindrical shells subjected to internal explosive detonations

Two explosively loaded cylindrical shell experiments were conducted to prov ide experimental data for benchmarking numerical codes. Each shell was subj ected to internal high-explosive detonations, which caused it to expand out wardly at strain rates on the order of 10(4) s(-1). At approximately 150 pe rcent strain, multiple plastic instabilities appeared on the surface of the se shells in a quasi-periodic pattern. These instabilities continued to dev elop into bands of localized shear and eventually formed cracks before caus ing the shell to fragment. Diagnostic equipment on these experiments includ ed a Fabry-Perot interferometer and a fast-framing camera. The experiments and the data obtained from the diagnostic equipment are discussed and illus trated.