Abstract
This study investigated the ballistic resistance of a composite target plate fabricated by combining SiC ceramic with the Dyneema fiber. To achieve a light-weight target plate that conforms to the US National Institute of Justice level four (NIJ IV) standards, minimal areal density analysis was conducted to obtain the optimal SiC ceramic-Dyneema fiber thickness combination. This study used energy absorption to analyze the ballistic resistance of the target plates. To drastically reduce experimental costs, most of this work employed ANSYS/LS-DYNA software to conduct finite element numerical simulations. First, ballistic experiments that conformed to NIJ IV standards were conducted to verify the simulation parameter configurations. Subsequently, the correlation function of the relationship between the combined thickness of the composite material and its ballistic resistance was determined through the experimental design, which effectively reduced the simulation analysis time. According to simulation experiments and regression analysis, the equation for the relationship between the combined thickness of the composite material and its ballistic resistance was EAhc,hf=−6276.5+500.6hc+1512.6hf+30.7hchf−8.1hc2−113.6hf2, though there were limitations to its application. From the numerical analysis results, 8.1940 mm SiC ceramic and 6.9637 mm Dyneema fiber were determined to constitute the optimal thickness combination for a composite that features a minimal areal density and which conforms to NIJ IV standards. The combination was verified to be consistent with the numerical simulation analysis results.
Highlights
Protective measures on battlefields commonly have a wide range of applications for personnel, vehicles, ships, planes, and buildings. e latest protection technologies are generally used on tanks and protective clothing. e continuous enhancement of weapons with the progress of science and technology required the constant development of protective materials and structures. e most widely applied protective materials are currently ceramic composites, which use ceramic as front plates and fiber, metal, or other tough materials as the back plate. is combination is called the ceramic composite (Figure 1)
To verify the parameter settings of the finite element numerical simulation, 6 mm silicon carbide ceramic and a 6 mm Dyneema fiber were bound and used as the ceramic composite target plate, which was used to conduct the target plate penetration experiment under the National Institute of Justice level four (NIJ IV) standard using 0.30′′ AP ammunitions. e initial and residual velocities of each bullet after it penetrated the plate were measured to calculate the absorptive energy of the plate, as shown in Table 1. e bullet mass (m) was measured as 10.6 g and was held constant throughout the experiment
Despite minor variations in the initial velocity, it still fell within the range of NIJ IV standards with a difference of less than 1.263%, evidence that this experiment was well controlled. e measured absorptive energy of the target plate varied, but the difference was less than 0.164%, indicating the stability and consistency of this experiment
Summary
Protective measures on battlefields commonly have a wide range of applications for personnel, vehicles, ships, planes, and buildings. e latest protection technologies are generally used on tanks (armored vehicles) and protective clothing. e continuous enhancement of weapons with the progress of science and technology required the constant development of protective materials and structures. e most widely applied protective materials are currently ceramic composites, which use ceramic as front plates and fiber, metal, or other tough materials as the back plate. is combination is called the ceramic composite (Figure 1). In a study on the ballistic resistance of ceramic composite target plates that combined ceramic (Al2O3) with different materials such as steel, aluminum, and spectra fiber as the back plate, Sherman [4] concluded that the ceramic plate was the main factor in resisting bullet penetration. E study employed a numerical simulation that combined finite element and smoothed particle hydrodynamics methods, whereby a mathematical relation of ballistic limit (V50) constituting the ratio between the thickness and surface density of ceramics and low carbon steel was established. E optimal combined thickness of ceramic and fiber for a light-weight, bullet-resistant ceramic composite target plate with minimal surface density was achieved through the derivation of the aforementioned correlation function. The optimal combination was verified through ballistic experiments and simulations
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