Towards an Improved Understanding of Shock Effects in Recovered Samples: Application to Shocked Clay Minerals

Samples recovered from shock-compression experiments offer a unique opportunity to understand the response of materials to extreme conditions. Correct interpretation of such experiments requires understanding the independent roles of pressure and temperature upon both compression and release. Previous shock-recovery experiments have largely ignored the thermal history of the sample or have underestimated peak pressures due to strong impedance mismatch between the sample and its surroundings. Here, we present current efforts towards increasingly controlled shock recovery schemes for the study of devolatilization in phyllosilicate clays. Shock effects may influence how volatiles within such clays are preferentially incorporated or lost during planetary accretion as well as spectral observations and interpretations of the aqueous history of planetary surfaces. We present both equation-of-state, post-shock temperature and devolatilization data for Kaolinite and Montmorillonite (up to 21 and 23 GPa, respectively) as well as post-mortem sample analysis using a variety of methods. Performance of sample recovery designs are simulated using a 3D Eulerian hydrodynamic code (CTH) and compared to experiments in order to optimize and improve sample geometries.