Buffalo physicist announces new blast protection technology

As Popeye might say, “blow me down!” Surajit Sen, a physics professor at the University of Buffalo has developed advanced new computer simulations that test blast-proof infrastructure without the expense of physical modelling and test explosions — expenses that can reach as high as $40,000. Earlier work by Sen showed that granular systems composed of individual spheres of gradually reduced size — a “tapered” chain in a casing — could efficiently absorb well over 80 percent of input energy. Sen’s recent research shows that it is possible to reduce the system size by a factor of five while also improving its ability to absorb shock.

According to Sen, the key is the use of interstitial grains of the right sizes to control energy propagation through the chain. “It turns out that the shock pulse is more easily managed when tiny interstitial grains are placed between the many progressively shrinking spheres or grains that make up the tapered chain,” he said. The smaller these grains are, the more shock absorption they achieve. “They trap energy as it flows from the larger to the smaller grain, slowing it down,” said Sen. “As it slows down, the smaller grain then essentially rattles back and forth between its two bigger neighbors, dissipating much of the energy as heat and sound.”

Published in October in Physical Review Letters, the research also has applications for tanks and aircraft carriers, as well as bullet-proof vests and other protective clothing for soldiers, law enforcement officers, and even outdoorsmen.

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-read more in this Azom report