Mechanism of shear attenuation near the interface under combined compression and shear impact loading

We investigate the compressional/shear coupling plastic wave propagation characteristics analytically for ideal elastic–plastic materials in both stress and particle velocity spaces, focusing on the shear wave attenuation near the interface occurring in pressure–shear plate impact experiments. The results show that the shear attenuation is strongly associated with the wave propagation characteristics of the coupling waves. In the stress space, as the shear stress increases, an adjustment of the stress components is observed and the final stress state along the wave path is a combined pure shear- and hydrostatic pressure-state. In the particle velocity space, the wave structures with different loading and maximal transverse particle velocity are obtained. The maximal transverse particle velocity varies with the longitudinal velocity and forms a boundary line. Once the loading transverse velocity exceeds this line, a transverse particle velocity discontinuity occurs at the impact interface. If the bonding strength is sufficiently high, there will be a shear band in the target in the extreme vicinity of the interface.