Discrete Modeling of Beds of Propellant Exposed to Strong Stimulus

This paper is a description of experimental and theoretical modeling concepts that are being developed to describe the behavior of confined propellant beds made of discrete particles, when subjected to a strong stimulus such as the impact of a penetrating jet. A principal goal is to discover basic mechanisms within the bed that control a reactive wave that either fails and extinguishes, or propagates as a rapid burning or detonating wave. This paper is an extended version of a lecture given by D. S. Stewart at the Institute for Mathematics and its Application in November of 1989.