A $55 Shock Tube for Simulated Blast Waves
Elijah Courtney, Amy Courtney, Michael Courtney

TL;DR
This paper presents a low-cost, easily assembled shock tube using a modified air pistol and standard pipe to generate controlled blast waves for testing sensors and materials, with pressures tunable by the number of pumps used.
Contribution
It introduces a simple, inexpensive shock tube design that can produce repeatable blast pressures suitable for sensor calibration and testing, using common household items.
Findings
Peak pressures ranged from 30.13 kPa to 101.99 kPa depending on pumps used.
Cycle time between shots was 30 to 45 seconds.
Design is cost-effective and easily accessible for field testing.
Abstract
Shock tubes are commonly employed to test candidate armor materials, validate numerical models, and conduct simulated blast experiments in animal models. As DoD interests desire to field wearable sensors as blast dosimeters, shock tubes may also serve for calibration and testing of these devices. The high blast pressures needed for experimental testing of candidate armors are unnecessary to test these sensors. An inexpensive, efficient, and easily available way of testing these pressure sensors is desirable. It is known that releasing compressed gas suddenly can create a repeatable shock front, and the pressures can be finely tuned by changing the pressure to which the gas is compressed. A Crosman 0.177 caliber air pistol was used (without loading any pellets) to compress and release air in one end of a 24 inch long 3/4 inch diameter standard pipe nipple to simulate a blast wave at the…
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Taxonomy
TopicsDisaster Response and Management · Combustion and Detonation Processes · Structural Response to Dynamic Loads
