The shock Hugoniot of Tuffisitic Kimberlite Breccia

The Hugoniot of a material represents the response to high-rate loading at pressures associated with those produced by blasting charges. The shock Hugoniot curve of a kimberlite, Tuffisitic Kimberlite Breccia (TKB), has been determined between 0.3 and 8.4 GPa using plate impact experiments. The dynamic shear response of TKB is reported for impact stresses between 1.1 and 3.2 GPa. Longitudinal and lateral stress measurements were made using embedded manganin gauges and VISAR in material shocked to a state of uniaxial strain. The shock response of TKB reveals a relatively weak material with no clear Hugoniot Elastic Limit (HEL) in the longitudinal stress measurements. The lateral stress measurements suggest an HEL between 0.6 and 0.9 GPa. Inelastic deformation is observed at all stresses due to a combination of volume compaction and brittle failure. The current data have been compared with similar reports in the literature and theory in order to accurately describe the response of this inhomogeneous geological material.