Numerical Conversion Method for the Dynamic Storage Modulus and Relaxation Modulus of Hydroxy-Terminated Polybutadiene (HTPB) Propellants

Abstract

As a typical viscoelastic material, solid propellants have a large difference in mechanical properties under static and dynamic loading. This variability is manifested in the difference in values of the relaxation modulus and dynamic modulus, which serve as the entry point for studying the dynamic and static mechanical properties of propellants. The relaxation modulus and dynamic modulus have a clear integral relationship in theory, but their consistency in engineering practice has never been verified. In this paper, by introducing the “catch-up factor λ” and “waiting factor γ”, a method for the inter-conversion of the dynamic storage modulus and relaxation modulus of HTPB propellant is established, and the consistency between them is verified. The results show that the time region of the calculated conversion values of the relaxation modulus obtained by this method covers 10−8–104 s, spanning twelve orders of magnitude. Compared to that of the relaxation modulus (10−4–104 s, spanning eight orders of magnitude), an expansion of four orders of magnitude is achieved. This enhances the expression ability of the relaxation modulus on the mechanical properties of the propellant. Furthermore, when the conversion method is applied to the dynamic–static modulus conversion of the other two HTPB propellants, the results show that the correlation coefficient between the calculated and measured conversion values is R2 > 0.933. This proves the applicability of this method to the dynamic–static modulus conversion of other types of HTPB propellants. It was also found that λ and γ have the same universal optimal value for different HTPB propellants. As a bridge for static and dynamic modulus conversion, this method greatly expands the expression ability of the relaxation modulus and dynamic storage modulus on the mechanical properties of the HTPB propellant, which is of great significance in the research into the mechanical properties of the propellant.