Shock Tube Studies of the Effects of Sharp-Rising, Long-Duration Overpressures on Biological Systems
Abstract
Shock tubes have been used successfully by a number of investigators to study the biological effects of variations in environmental pressures. Recently an unusually versatile laboratory Pressurization source became available with the capability of consistently reproducing a wide variety of pressure-time phenornena of durations equal to and well beyond those associated with the detonation of nuclear devices. Thus it became possible to supplement costly full-scale field research in blast biology carried out at the Nevada Test Site by using an economical yet realistic laboratory tool. In one exploratory study employing pressure pulses of 5 to 10 sec duration wherein the timnes to max overpressure and the magnitudes of the overpressures were varied a relatively high tolerance of biological niedia to pressures well over 150 psi was demonstrated. In contrast, the present paper will describe the relatively high biological susceptibility to long duration overpressures in which the pressure rises occurred in single and double fast-rising steps.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 10, 1959
- Accession Number
- ADA385368
Entities
People
- D. R. Richmond
- F. Sherping
- M. B. Wetherbe
- R. T. Sanchez
- R. V. Taborelli
Organizations
- Lovelace Foundation