Assessment of acoustic shock wave resistance of SiO2 (α-cristobalite): A potential material for aerospace and defense industry applications.

In the present research article, the acoustic shock wave-resistant efficiency of silica microparticles (SiO 2 -α-cristobalite)) has been experimentally evaluated in terms of structural, optical and morphological stability against the impact of shock waves. The required SiO 2 particles were synthesized by a hydrothermal method which was subjected to a different number of shock pulses such as 200,400 and 600 with Mach number 2.2. Shocked samples' structural, morphological and optical stabilities have been evaluated by utilizing a powder X-ray diffractometer (PXRD), Ultraviolet–Diffuse reflectance spectrometer (DRS) while the surface morphological analysis has been scrutinized by the field emission scanning electron microscopic technique (FESEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy techniques are utilized to evaluate oxidation states and crystallographic structural stability. The above-mentioned analytical techniques provide convincing proofs whereby the synthesized SiO 2 particles are authentically proven to possess outstanding structural, optical and morphological stability against the impact of shock waves. The implicated experimental results and the arguments strongly suggest that the SiO 2 particles are suitable candidates for aerospace and defense industry applications due to their outstanding shock wave-resistant properties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]