Matrerials Characterization of Craninal Simulants for Blast Induced Traumatic Brain Injury
Abstract
In the quest to understand the mechanisms involved in blast-induced traumatic brain injuries that plague our returning military servicemen, materials to simulate tissues of the cranium are needed to produce models that are readily reproducible in blast studies. Object to object variation and interspecies differences are current limitations in animal and cadaver studies. Test objects that are both biofidelic and reproducible provide the opportunity to investigate dominant mechanisms at varying blast parameters. Selecting materials that are transparent allow for optical diagnostics during the blast event. Using tissue simulants, it may be possible to reproduce post-mortem diagnostics used in the clinic for adequate comparison of the observed injuries. The mechanisms elucidated from these studies may be used to inform the design of protective gear to mitigate blast injuries. Here we present the mechanical and material characterization of several materials intended for use as potential biofidelic simulants in shock tube and open field blasts for high speed optical imaging, gross observations, and post-blast analysis.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 28, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1040663
Entities
People
- Adam Willis
Organizations
- 59th Medical Wing