Abstract
The paper presents the results of studies on the effects of shooting composite materials produced by pressure infiltration with the EN AW-7075 alloy as a matrix and reinforcement in the form of preforms made of α-Al2O3 particles. Composite materials were made with two reinforcement contents (i.e., 30% and 40% vol. of α-Al2O3 particles). The composites produced in the form of 12 mm thick plates were subjected to impact loads from a 7.62 × 39 FMJ M43 projectile fired from a Kalashnikov. The samples of composites with different contents of strengthening particles were subjected to detailed microscopic examination to determine the mechanism of destruction. The effect of a projectile impact on the microstructure of the material within the perforation holes was identified. There were radial cracks found around the puncture holes and brittle fragmentation of the front surfaces of the specimens. The change in the volume of the reinforcement significantly affected the inlet, puncture and outlet diameters. The observations confirmed that brittle cracking dominated the destruction mechanism and the crack propagation front ran mainly in the matrix material and along the boundaries of the α-Al2O3 particles. In turn, numerical tests were conducted to describe the physical phenomena occurring due to the erosion of a projectile hitting a composite casing. They were performed with the use of the ABAQUS program. Based on constitutive models, the material constants developed from the identification of material properties were modelled and the finite element was generated from homogenization in the form of a representative volume element (RVE). The results of microscopic investigations of the destruction mechanism and numerical investigations were combined. The conducted tests and analyses shed light on the application possibilities of aluminium composites reinforced with Al2O3 particles in the construction of add-on-armour protective structures.
Highlights
IntroductionIn the previous engineering applications of materials resistant to impact (ballistic impact), composite materials occupy a significant position [1,2,3,4,5]
In the previous engineering applications of materials resistant to impact, composite materials occupy a significant position [1,2,3,4,5]
Efforts to understand the physical processes are directed towards searching for new material solutions, the mechanical properties of which should exceed those of the traditional material
Summary
In the previous engineering applications of materials resistant to impact (ballistic impact), composite materials occupy a significant position [1,2,3,4,5]. Efforts to understand the physical processes are directed towards searching for new material solutions, the mechanical properties of which should exceed those of the traditional material. Alternative materials can be composites with a metal matrix reinforced with ceramic particles or fibres, the so-called cermets (metal matrix composite—MMC) [18,19,20]. These materials mainly feature a relatively low density (3.95 g/cm for aluminium oxide, approximately 2.7 g/cm for aluminium) and good mechanical properties, such as impact strength, tensile strength, yield strength or elongation [21,22,23]
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