United computational model for predicting thermochemical-mechanical erosion in artillery barrel considering friction behavior

Abstract

Artillery barrel erosion is mainly divided into two categories, namely thermochemical erosion and mechanical wear. However, most current research on this topic focuses on the former, and lacks sufficient attention to the latter. To describe the coupling relationship of thermochemical-mechanical erosion, this paper is inspired by the friction behavior between barrel and projectile, and proposes a material degradation model of thermochemical erosion considering frictional temperature rise. The change in the friction state caused by the temperature rise in a barrel is characterized by the friction coefficient formula, and updating the interior ballistic movement, results in a novel mechanical friction wear model. Moreover, a mechanical collision wear model is derived using the impact abrasion theory. The followed finite element simulations demonstrate that these proposed quantification models are capable of describing the artillery barrel erosion characteristics during the interior ballistic process more accurately. Good agreement between the numerical simulation and the actual rifling erosion conditions is achieved. The larger erosion is mainly located at the initial part of the rifling and the muzzle, which are about 1.50 mm and 0.45 mm respectively after launching 500 projectiles.