Tests to Determine the Ullage Explosion Tolerance of Helicopter Fuel Tanks

Abstract

Twenty-one ballistic tests were conducted on fuel tanks similar to those on US Army helicopters to determine their ability to withstand pressures generated during an ullage explosion. The tanks were filled with known JP-4/air gas mixtures and impacted with caliber .30 M1 incendiary projectiles at approximately 2000 feet per second. The pressure rise was measured with transducers and the tank reponse was recorded with high-speed photography. The results indicated that noncrashworthy bladder tanks in honeycomb structure have an overpressure threshold of about 20 psig, while crashworthy tanks in Z-bar reinforced aluminum structure can tolerate explosive pressure to about 60 psig. The results can be useful in the design of optimum ullage protection schemes for the armor piercing incendiary (API) combat threat.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1978
Accession Number
ADA058188

Entities

People

  • Charles M. Pedriani

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Air Platforms
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Aircrafts
  • Army Aircraft
  • Diagrams
  • Explosions
  • Explosives
  • Failure Mode And Effect Analysis
  • Fiberglass
  • Fuel Systems
  • Fuel Tanks
  • Honeycomb Structures
  • Incendiary Projectiles
  • Materials
  • Military Research
  • Pressure Measurement
  • Pressure Transducers
  • Schematic Diagrams
  • United States

Readers

  • Explosive Engineering.
  • Petroleum Engineering
  • ballistics.