Brisance
Encyclopedia
Brisance is the shattering capability of an explosive. It is a measure of the rapidity with which an explosive develops its maximum pressure
. The term originates from the French verb "briser", which means to break or shatter. Brisance is of practical importance for determining the effectiveness of an explosion in fragmenting shells, bomb
casings, grenade
s, structures, and the like.
A brisant explosive is one that attains its maximum pressure so rapidly that a shock wave
is formed. The net effect is to shatter (by shock resonance) the material surrounding or in contact with the supersonic detonation wave created by the explosion. Even within high explosives which build up a supersonic shock front, some build up faster than others, yield higher detonation velocities, and tend more towards controlled shock fronts in bulk, all of which lead to higher brisance.
Thus, brisance is a measure of the overall shattering ability of an explosive and is not necessarily correlated with the explosive's total work capacity. It cannot be predicted with full certainty as of now, but has to be quantified empirically.
The sand crush test is commonly employed to determine the relative brisance in comparison to TNT. No single test is capable of directly comparing the explosive properties of two or more compounds; it is important to examine the data from several such tests (sand crush, trauzl
, and so forth) in order to gauge relative brisance. True values for comparison will require field experiments.
One of the most brisant of the conventional explosives is cyclotrimethylene trinitramine (also known as RDX
or Hexogen).
Pressure
Pressure is the force per unit area applied in a direction perpendicular to the surface of an object. Gauge pressure is the pressure relative to the local atmospheric or ambient pressure.- Definition :...
. The term originates from the French verb "briser", which means to break or shatter. Brisance is of practical importance for determining the effectiveness of an explosion in fragmenting shells, bomb
Bomb
A bomb is any of a range of explosive weapons that only rely on the exothermic reaction of an explosive material to provide an extremely sudden and violent release of energy...
casings, grenade
Grenade
A grenade is a small explosive device that is projected a safe distance away by its user. Soldiers called grenadiers specialize in the use of grenades. The term hand grenade refers any grenade designed to be hand thrown. Grenade Launchers are firearms designed to fire explosive projectile grenades...
s, structures, and the like.
A brisant explosive is one that attains its maximum pressure so rapidly that a shock wave
Shock wave
A shock wave is a type of propagating disturbance. Like an ordinary wave, it carries energy and can propagate through a medium or in some cases in the absence of a material medium, through a field such as the electromagnetic field...
is formed. The net effect is to shatter (by shock resonance) the material surrounding or in contact with the supersonic detonation wave created by the explosion. Even within high explosives which build up a supersonic shock front, some build up faster than others, yield higher detonation velocities, and tend more towards controlled shock fronts in bulk, all of which lead to higher brisance.
Thus, brisance is a measure of the overall shattering ability of an explosive and is not necessarily correlated with the explosive's total work capacity. It cannot be predicted with full certainty as of now, but has to be quantified empirically.
The sand crush test is commonly employed to determine the relative brisance in comparison to TNT. No single test is capable of directly comparing the explosive properties of two or more compounds; it is important to examine the data from several such tests (sand crush, trauzl
Trauzl lead block test
The Trauzl lead block test, also called the Trauzl test or just Trauzl, is a test used to measure the strength of explosive materials. It was developed by Isidor Trauzl in 1885....
, and so forth) in order to gauge relative brisance. True values for comparison will require field experiments.
One of the most brisant of the conventional explosives is cyclotrimethylene trinitramine (also known as RDX
RDX
RDX, an initialism for Research Department Explosive, is an explosive nitroamine widely used in military and industrial applications. It was developed as an explosive which was more powerful than TNT, and it saw wide use in WWII. RDX is also known as cyclonite, hexogen , and T4...
or Hexogen).
See also
- Relative effectiveness factorRelative effectiveness factorRelative effectiveness factor or R.E. factor is a measurement of an explosive's power for military demolitions purposes. It is used to compare an explosive's effectiveness relative to TNT by weight only. This enables engineers to substitute one explosive for another when they are calculating...
- Detonation velocity
- Table of explosive detonation velocitiesTable of Explosive Detonation VelocitiesThis is a list of the detonation velocities at specified density of various explosive compounds.The velocity of detonation is an important indicator for overall energy or power of detonation, and in particular for the brisance or shattering effect of an explosive.-References:*Cooper, Paul W.,...