Experimental and Computational Study of a High-Speed Collision of an Aluminum Striker with a Solid and Mesh Obstacle

The results of computational and experimental studies of peculiarities of the process of impact between the striker and obstacle, which imitates shield protection of spacecrafts, have been considered and pictures of fragmentation of the striker and obstacle have been obtained. The numerical calculations were carried out using the method of smooth particle hydrodynamics (SPH). In the experiments, the striker was accelerated using a two-stage light-gas gun; the state of the obstacle and striker at the moment of their interaction was controlled using an X-ray and high-speed video camera. The recording equipment was switched on using induction cross sections. The comparative analysis of the results of numerical simulations and experiments have been considered.