Ballistic Impact Simulation of Ceramic/Metal Armor Structures

Abstract

The study presents a comparative numerical investigation on ballistic performance of ceramic/metal armor structures. 2D axisymmetric numerical model was developed for ballistic impact simulations using LS-DYNA ® finite element software. The armor structures included combinations of boron carbide (B4C), Al6061-T6 and 4340 steel constituents. The interfaces in the armor structure were modelled with an epoxy resin adhesive. In order to define proper material behavior, Johnson-Holmquist-Ceramics material model for B4C and Plastic-Kinematic material model for Al6061-T6, 4340 steel and epoxy resin was used. The armor structures were subjected to 7.62 mm ogive-nosed steel projectile impact. In the first section, the influence of back plate material on the ballistic performance of the armor structure for bi-layers ceramic/metal configuration (ceramic front face and metal back plate) was investigated for Al6061-T6 and 4340 steel materials under same thickness and areal density. In the second section, the effect of removing half thickness of the metal constituent from the back plate and placing on the front face was investigated for both Al6061-T6 and 4340 steel materials. Finally, the influence of adhesive thickness on the ballistic performance of the armor structure was investigated. Perforation response of the armor structures were examined in terms of residual velocity of the projectile and damage mechanisms of the armor structure.