Experimental Research on Dynamic Mechanical Properties of High-Density Foamed Concrete

Foamed concrete is increasingly utilized in protection engineering because it offers a high energy absorption ratio and a relatively low construction cost. To investigate the dynamic properties of foamed concrete, a series of dynamic compression tests are carried out on high-density foamed concrete with densities of 800 kg/m3, 1000 kg/m3, and 1100 kg/m3 under a strain rate range of 59.05 s−1~302.17 s−1 by using a Φ-100 mm split Hopkinson pressure bar (SHPB) device. The effects of strain rate on the stress–strain relationship, dynamic compressive strength, and dynamic increase factor of foamed concrete are discussed in detail. The results show that the dynamic mechanical characteristics of foamed concrete with different densities exhibit a significant strain rate enhancement effect. Additionally, the energy absorption characteristics of foamed concrete are investigated, demonstrating that it can effectively prevent the transmission of incident energy and that its energy absorption efficiency declines as the strain rate increases. A high-speed camera was also employed to capture the failure process of foamed concrete. The results exhibit that fracture production and development induce the failure of foamed concrete, the failure process of foamed concrete advances as the strain rate increases, and the failure mode becomes increasingly severe.