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Research Papers

# Prediction of the Vibration Levels Generated by Pyrotechnic Shocks Using an Approach by Equivalent Mechanical Shock

[+] Author and Article Information
David Wattiaux

Faculté Polytechnique de Mons, 31 Boulevard Dolez, 7000 Mons, Belgiumdavid.wattiaux@fpms.ac.be

Olivier Verlinden

Faculté Polytechnique de Mons, 31 Boulevard Dolez, 7000 Mons, Belgiumolivier.verlinden@fpms.ac.be

Calogero Conti

Faculté Polytechnique de Mons, 31 Boulevard Dolez, 7000 Mons, Belgiumcalogero.conti@fpms.ac.be

Christophe De Fruytier

Thales Alenia Space ETCA, 101 Rue Chapelle Beaussart, 6032 Mont-sur-Marchienne, Belgiumchristophe.defruytier@thalesaleniaspace.com

J. Vib. Acoust 130(4), 041012 (Jul 14, 2008) (11 pages) doi:10.1115/1.2827985 History: Received May 22, 2007; Revised November 27, 2007; Published July 14, 2008

## Abstract

This paper is concerned with the numerical simulation of mechanical structures subjected to pyroshocks. In practice, the methodology is applied on the pyroshock test facility, which is used by Thales to qualify the electronic equipment intended to be embarked onboard of spatial vehicles. This test facility involves one plate or two plates linked by screw bolts. The tested device is mounted on one side while the explosive charge is applied on the other side. The main issue of this work is to be able to tune, by simulation, the parameters of the facility (number of plates, material of plate, number of bolts, amount of explosive, etc.) so as to get the required level of solicitation during the test. The paper begins by an introduction presenting the state of the art in terms of pyroshock modeling, followed by a description of the shock response spectrum (SRS) commonly used to represent the test specifications of an embarked equipment. It turns out that there is a lack of computational techniques able to predict the dynamic behavior of complex structures subjected to high frequency shock waves such as explosive loads. Three sections are then devoted to the simulation of the pyrotechnic test, which involves on one hand a model of the structure and on the other hand an appropriate representation of the impulsive load. The finite element method (FEM) is used to model the dynamic behavior of the structure. The FEM models of several instances of the facility have been updated and validated up to $1000Hz$ by comparison with the results of experimental modal analyses. For the excitation source, we have considered an approach by equivalent mechanical shock (EMS), which consists in replacing the actual excitation by a localized force applied on the FEM model at the center of the explosive device. The main originality of the approach is to identify the amplitude and duration of the EMS by minimizing the gap between the experimental and numerical results in terms of the SRS related to several points of the facility. The identification has been performed on a simple plate structure for different amounts of explosive. The methodology is then validated in three ways. Firstly, it is shown that there is a good agreement between experimental and numerical SRS for all the points considered to identify the EMS. Secondly, it appears that the energy injected by the EMS is well correlated with the amount of explosive. Lastly, the EMS identified on one structure for a given amount of explosive leads to coherent responses when applied on other structures. A parametric study is finally performed, which shows the influence of the thickness of the plate, the material properties, the localization of the EMS, and the addition of a local mass. The different obtained results show that our pyroshock model allows to efficiently estimate the acceleration levels undergone by the electronic equipment during a pyroshock and, in this way, to predict some eventual electrical failures, such as the chatter of electromagnetic relays.

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## Figures

Figure 12

Influence of the shape of the excitation on the SRS

Figure 13

Evolution of the product Fmaxτ in relation to the length of the explosive cord

Figure 14

Comparison between experimental and simulated SRS

Figure 15

Comparison between experimental and simulated acceleration fields

Figure 16

The other analyzed configurations

Figure 17

Comparison between experimental and simulated SRS-double plate in vertical configuration

Figure 18

Influence of some operating parameters

Figure 1

Pyrotechnic valve (left view: before activation-right view: after activation)

Figure 2

Mild detonating fuses (MDFs)

Figure 3

Single degree of freedom system

Figure 4

Examples of SRS specifications

Figure 5

Examples of typical pyroshock test facilities (Thales Alenia Space ETCA)

Figure 6

View of the pyrotechnic device

Figure 7

Arrangement of explosive device for different lengths of the detonating cord

Figure 8

Experimental setup and location of the explosive device

Figure 9

Location of the explosive device and piezoelectric sensors (circles)

Figure 10

Main experimental observations

Figure 11

Definition of the EMS

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