High strain rate characterisation of soda-lime-silica glass and the effect of residual stresses

A ring-on-ring test configuration for the equibiaxial flexural testing of flat samples was integrated into a novel modified split-Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) setup. The established modifications enabled high-speed cameras for fracture assessment and non-contact optical deflection measurements using stereo digital image correlation (stereo-DIC). In the present paper, this setup was utilised to characterise the flexural surface strength and stiffness (Young’s modulus) of circular, as-received soda-lime-silica glass samples at high strain rates. The effect of residual stresses was also studied by including thermally tempered glass samples divided into four residual stress groups. Despite the frequent application of glass products in the built environment, often post-processed into tempered or laminated glass, these investigations are still rare and thus highly demanded when designing for extreme events such as extreme weather, ballistic impacts, or blast loads. A total of 315 samples were tested at a quasi-static and a dynamic loading rate ranging from 2.0 to 4.3·106MPas-1. It was found that the flexural strength of the glass across residual stress groups was strongly dependent on the applied dynamic loading rate, while the residual stresses themselves showed no significant effect on the loading rate dependence. At the dynamic loading, the strength increased between 60 and 86%. Within the two tested loading rates, strength increased expectedly with compressive surface stress. From the stereo-DIC deflection measurements, no change in Young’s modulus with loading rate was observed.