Optimization and Numerical Analysis of the Ricochet of Conical Nose Projectile in the Collision with Ceramic-Aluminum Armor

Abstract

The anti-armored bullets have more kinetic energy due to additional mass than ordinary bullets which increases their likelihood function of penetration for a different target. It is necessary to seek solutions to reduce the possibility of penetration of this type of bullets. One of the most important parameters influencing penetration is projectile impact velocity. The mechanism of penetration varies in different velocity ranges. In this paper, the phenomenon of buckling steel cone with a nose cone in a collision with ceramic targets was investigated by the explicit finite element method using LS-Dayna software. The numerical simulation shows acceptable accuracy after comparing the results with previous research. In this study, the critical angle of ricochet at a different velocity ranging from 700 m/s to 1000 m/s and optimization of the optimal thickness ratio of ceramic/metal targets has been considered. According to the simulation outputs and analytical relations, it is clear that the critical ricocheting angle has increased with increasing velocity and the probability of projectile penetration is higher. The results also show that in the case of an oblique collision at a certain angle, the projectile velocity decreases with increasing target thickness with no drastic changes in the directional angle. As the angle of oblique increases, the amount of penetration in the target decreases. For long rod projectiles, the reduction in kinetic energy at the same collision velocities is not much different for both vertical and oblique collision modes. The erosion of the projectile mass in oblique collisions is less than in vertical collisions at the same time.