Air Blast and the Science of Dynamic Pressure Measurements

INTRODUCTION TO AIR BLAST MEASUREMENTS An explosion in air is a process by which a rapid release of energy generates a pressure wave of finite amplitude. The energy source can be anything that generates a violent reaction when initiated. This includes: chemical or nuclear materials, gases (high pressure gasstorage vessels, steam boilers), or electricity (spark gap, rapid vaporization of a metal). The properties of air will cause the front of this pressure wave to "shock up", or steepen, as the front moves. The result is a shock front moving supersonically, i.e., faster than the sound speed of the air ahead of it, with discontinuities in pressure, density, and particle velocity across the front.