An experimental study of the penetration resistance of UHMWPE laminates with limited thickness

Abstract

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) laminates represent the most weight-efficient industrial fiber-reinforced resin-based composite material for ballistic protection. To comprehensively understand the anti-penetration mechanism and quantify the anti-penetration performance of UHMWPE laminates, theoretical, experimental, and equation-fitting methods are employed to study and test the ballistic response characteristics of UHMWPE laminates. The results reveal that UHMWPE fibers possess a theoretically determined longitudinal wave velocity that exceeds 10 km/s and exhibit an extremely strong stress diffusion capacity. The anti-penetration mechanism and performance of UHMWPE laminates are significantly influenced by the laminate thicknesses, projectile velocities, and temperatures. As the laminate thickness increases, the ballistic limits of UHMWPE laminates increase almost linearly. Large area delamination and back face deformation play a crucial role in the energy dissipation of UHMWPE laminates. With the increase of projectile velocities, there exists an energy limit representing the maximum energy absorption capacity of the UHMWPE laminates that is worthy of reasonable utilization in spacing ballistic-proof armors. Additionally, the ballistic performance of UHMWPE laminates generally decreases with increasing temperatures, and this trend becomes more pronounced after 80 ℃. Based on data-driven analysis, this paper proposes an equation for calculating the ballistic limit of UHMWPE laminates that takes into account the temperatures and projectile shapes, with a prediction error basically within 5 %. The research results can offer valuable guidance for the ballistic-proof design of UHMWPE laminates.