High-speed photographic study of wave and fracture propagation in fused silica

An Edge-on Impact (EOI) technique, developed at the Ernst-Mach-Institute (EMI), coupled with a Cranz-Schardin high-speed camera, has been successfully utilized to visualize dynamic fracture in many brittle materials. In a typical test, the projectile strikes one edge of a specimen and damage formation and fracture propagation is recorded during the first 20 μs after impact. In the present study, stress waves and damage propagation in fused silica were examined by means of two modified Edge-on Impact arrangements. In one arrangement, fracture propagation was observed simultaneously in side and top views of the specimens by means of two Cranz-Schardin cameras. In another arrangement, the photographic technique was modified by placing the specimen between crossed polarizers and using the photo-elastic effect to visualize the stress waves. Pairs of impact tests at approximately equivalent velocities were carried out in transmitted plane (shadowgraphs) and crossed polarized light.