3 ms·

due to the copper cone shape and the explosion wave propagation from the back the copper, which at those pressures is flowing like a liquid, is formed into a je

by trhway 4y ago

due to the copper cone shape and the explosion wave propagation from the back the copper, which at those pressures is flowing like a liquid, is formed into a jet and pushed forward like a water in a power washer hose. Water at 3000bar would cut several inch steel (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quL14Csmi_Y https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=quL14Csmi_Y). The copper in that explosion gets accelerated to the speeds of like 10km/s and as a result cuts through everything in its way. A bit of current context - beside deep penetration the jet isn't that destructive to surroundings. And here comes design flaw of Russian tanks - getting inside a Russian tank such jet frequently hits the tank's ammo which in those tanks is stored in a carousel around/under the turret and thus it results in the whole tank ammo explosion which even throws the multi-ton turret several stories up into the air (you can see a lot of the tanks blown up in that way - 'lollypops' - in Ukraine). To compare - US Abrams tank has ammo stored in separate compartment in the back of the turret.

KennyBlanken 4y ago
FYI, waterjets cut by using water to carry an abrasive media which is injected into the stream at/near the nozzle, not by the action of the water alone.
- jacquesm 4y ago
  You can use an abrasive component but you don't have to, pure waterjet cutting works. And depending on the materials and the nozzle shape might actually be the optimum.
Someone 4y ago
Also crucially, the munitions compartment is weaker on the outside of the tank than on the wall between it and the crew, so if it goes, it blows out of the tank (search term “blowout panels”) Fireworks and ammunition factories and storage facilities tend to have strong walls and relatively weak roofs for the same reason: if a building goes boom, you don’t want it to make neighboring buildings go boom, too.

by trhway 4y ago

KennyBlanken 4y ago

FYI, waterjets cut by using water to carry an abrasive media which is injected into the stream at/near the nozzle, not by the action of the water alone.

jacquesm 4y ago
You can use an abrasive component but you don't have to, pure waterjet cutting works. And depending on the materials and the nozzle shape might actually be the optimum.

Someone 4y ago

Also crucially, the munitions compartment is weaker on the outside of the tank than on the wall between it and the crew, so if it goes, it blows out of the tank (search term “blowout panels”) Fireworks and ammunition factories and storage facilities tend to have strong walls and relatively weak roofs for the same reason: if a building goes boom, you don’t want it to make neighboring buildings go boom, too.