Experimental and numerical investigation on the deformation and failure behavior in the Taylor test

The present paper presents an experimental and numerical study concerning the deformation and failure behavior in the Taylor impact test. Projectiles manufactured from a commercial high strength and super-hard aluminum alloy 7A04-T6 with a nominal diameter of 12.6 mm and a length of 50.8 mm were fired against a hardened tool steel plate by a one- and two-stage compressed gas gun within the velocity range of 175–370 m/s. Three different deformation and failure modes were observed from the test: mushrooming, shear cracking and fragmentation. Individual velocity ranges and the transitions between the deformation/failure modes are identified by both experiments and numerical simulations. Slightly modified Johnson–Cook models of strength and accumulative damage failure are employed in 3D numerical simulations to describe material behavior of the striking cylinders. Good agreement between the numerical simulations and the experimental results was found. Detailed computational results of each scenario are offered to understand the deformation and failure mechanisms.