Tensile behaviour of commercial aluminium alloys used in armour applications at high strain rate

The use of aluminium alloys in the construction of defence vehicles is strongly increasing in these last decades due to their comparably promising potential of the weight-performance relationship at similar price range. In this paper, the mechanical properties at high strain rate in tension of several commercial aluminium (2xxx, 5xxx, and 7xxx) alloys are analysed and compared. The tests have been carried out by means of three different set-ups for quasi-statics, medium and high strain rates. For the high and medium strain rate range following test methods have been used respectively: the Split Hopkinson Tensile Bar and the Hydro Pneumatic Machine installed in the DynaMat Laboratory of the University of Applied Sciences of Southern Switzerland-Lugano. The paper presents the changing stress at a given strain when increasing the strain rate from 10(-3) to 10(3) s(-1), the strain-rate sensitivity of the uniform and the fracture strain, the reduction of the cross-sectional area at fracture with increasing strain-rate. (C) 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.