Constitutive Equations for Solid Propellants

Mechanical behavior of the Space Shuttle redesigned solid rocket motor (RSRM) propellant is studied from a phenomenological point of view. Motivated by the study of the experimental data three initially isotropic constitutive models have been developed. All models represent the effect of strain rate, superimposed hydrostatic pressure, and cyclic loading on the stress and dilatation response of the material. A particular emphasis is given to the prediction of volume dilatation. The model resulting in the best representation of the available data is calibrated using only a few tests. The predictions of the model are compared with experiments for several loading conditions not used in the calibration.