High-Strain-Rate Behavior of a Viscoelastic Gel Under High-Velocity Microparticle Impact

Background Impact experiments, routinely performed at the macroscale, have long been used to study mechanical properties of materials. Microscale high-velocity impact, relevant to applications such as ballistic drug delivery has remained largely unexplored at the level of a single impact event. Objective In this work, we study the mechanical behavior of polymer gels subjected to high-velocity microparticle impact, with strain rates up to 107 s−1, through direct visualization of the impact dynamics. Methods In an all-optical laser-induced particle impact test, 10–24 μm diameter steel microparticles are accelerated through a laser ablation process to velocities ranging from 50 to 1000 m/s. Impact events are monitored using a high-speed multi-frame camera with nanosecond time resolution. Results We measure microparticle trajectories and extract both maximum and final penetration depths for a range of particle sizes, velocities, and gel concentrations. We propose a modified Clift-Gauvin model and demonstrate that it adequately describes both individual trajectories and penetration depths. The model parameters, namely, the apparent viscosity and impact resistance, are extracted for a range of polymer concentrations. Conclusions Laser-induced microparticle impact test makes it possible to perform reproducible measurements of the single particle impact dynamics on gels and provides a quantitative basis for understanding these dynamics. We show that the modified Clift-Gauvin model, which accounts for the velocity dependence of the drag coefficient, offers a better agreement with the experimental data than the more commonly-used Poncelet model. Microscale ballistic impact imaging performed with high temporal and spatial resolution can serve as direct input for simulations of high-velocity impact responses and high strain rate deformation in gels and other soft materials.