Measurement of the Deformation of Aluminum Alloys under High Strain Rates Using High Speed Digital Cameras

Aluminum alloys exhibit an attractive combination of mechanical and physical properties such as high stiffness and low density, which favors their utilization in many structural applications. Thus, increasing the structural applications of aluminum alloy is the driving force for the need to adequately understand its deformation and failure mechanisms under various types of dynamic loading conditions. In this study, full field plastic deformation of AA6061-T6 aluminum alloy at high strain-rates under compressive and torsion loads are measured using split Hopkinson compression, torsion Kolsky bars, and a high speed digital image correlation system. The stress-strain curves obtained using the high speed digital cameras are compared with results obtained from the elastic waves in the compression and torsion bars. A post deformation analysis of the specimen also shows strain localization along narrow adiabatic shear bands in the AA6061-T6 alloy.