Experimental characterisation and numerical simulation of ballistic penetration of columnar ceramic/fiber laminate composite armor

Abstract

To improve the design of lightweight, high-performance bulletproof armors, three columnar ceramic/fiber laminate composite armors were designed and prepared, and their ballistic behavior against 7.62 mm armor-piercing bullets was investigated. Through the microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) analysis of target samples, B4C ceramics were found to exhibit better comprehensive bulletproof properties than SiC ceramics, with a 142 % improvement in the protection margin. The design realized by combining ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) with aramid III could help decrease the backface signature (BFS) by 53 %. A numerical simulation model was established by combining the smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) and finite element (FE) method, called the SPH–FE method, considering the strain rate effect. The SPH–FE model could accurately describe the damage morphology and contribution of the ceramics in terms of the energy dissipation. The damage radius of the ceramic layer was effectively constrained by the design of the columnar ceramic. The maximum error of the SPH–FE model was 6.41 %. The damage mechanism of each layer of the composite armor in the penetration process was explored in detail. A transition from shear damage to tensile damage occurred with layering as the transition marker.