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A Comparative Study on the Ballistic Performance of Multilayered SiC/AA7075 Functionally Graded Armor Materials

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Abstract

Functionally graded materials (FGMs) with a gradual transition from ceramic to metal are believed to have superior ballistic performance compared to ceramic/metal composite armors. Therefore, multilayered SiC/AA7075 FGM samples of size 50 × 50 mm are synthesized using a relatively simple and inexpensive technique, i.e., powder metallurgy. The armor requirements depend upon the type of threat and hence, the region and circumstances. Therefore, unlike most of the available investigations, the present study deals with FGM armors with low areal density ( < 30 kg/m2) against 7.62 × 39 mm Hardened Steel Core bullets. Two different FGM designs comprising 3 and 5 layers of SiC/AA7075 composite, with 10-30-50 wt.% SiC and 10-20-30-40-50 wt.% SiC, respectively, are developed herein along with a homogeneous composite with 30 wt.% SiC for comparison. The fabrication process involves the stacking of powder blends pertaining to different layers in the die cavity followed by hot pressing at a temperature of 400 °C and 325 MPa pressure. The green compacts are then subjected to pressureless sintering at 540 °C for 3 h. Solution heat treatment and aging are found to enhance the hardness of each layer significantly. The results of the depth of penetration-based ballistic evaluation profoundly establish the superiority of FGM armors over homogeneous composites. Besides, a one-dimensional stress wave propagation-based analysis is also presented herein to explain the reason for the better ballistic performance of FGMs.

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Acknowledgments

The financial support received from Armament Research Board (ARMREB), Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), Government of India under Grant No. ARMREB/CDSW/2018/201 is highly acknowledged. The authors are also grateful to the Director, CDSW Panel Coordinator and Scientists (Dr Prince Sharma and Dr Debarathi) at TBRL Chandigarh for permitting and facilitating the conduct of ballistic testing.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Kurukshetra, Haryana, 136119, India

    Mayank Chouhan, Punit Kumar & Lalit Thakur

  2. BEHI, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL), DRDO, Chandigarh, 160030, India

    Sanjeev Kumar Verma

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  1. Mayank Chouhan
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Correspondence to Lalit Thakur.

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Chouhan, M., Kumar, P., Thakur, L. et al. A Comparative Study on the Ballistic Performance of Multilayered SiC/AA7075 Functionally Graded Armor Materials. J. of Materi Eng and Perform (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-023-08398-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11665-023-08398-z

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