The classical continuum mechanics theory cannot sufficiently describe the effect of pebbles on projectile, which leads to a large calculation error. In this paper, an orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system is constructed, which effectively describes and perfects the normal cavity expansion theory. A couple stress theory based on the normal cavity expansion is proposed in which not only the tangential movements but also the rotations of the concrete medium are considered. According to the high-speed impact of pebble concrete, combined with dynamic equations and the FE simulation, the theoretical and simulation results of pebble particles scale on warhead resistance are compared. It is shown that, the larger the scale of pebble particles, the stronger the effect of rotation on the resistant force applied on the warhead.
Keywords: couple stress theory; high-speed impact; normal cavity expansion; pebble-concrete target; penetration.