Investigation of the Impact Performance of Various Glass and Ceramic Systems.

Abstract

This report describes a study of the strength impact and fracture behaviour of a range of ceramic materials. One part of the research is concerned with ceramics which have applications as radomes or infra-red transmitting window materials, the other with ceramics with potential application in body armour. Ceramics included in the study include zinc sulphide, various glass ceramics and aluminas, silicon carbide, silicon nitride, titanium diboride and boron carbide. in one series of experiments we have measured post-impact (i.e. residual) strength curves. These experiments involve impacting specimens at chosen velocities and then measuring the residual strengths after impact. Strength is plotted as a function of velocity. Such curves give: (i) the threshold velocity above which strength degradation following impact occurs; (ii) the fall in strength above the threshold; (iii) a ready comparison with other materials or between different batches of the same material which have had, for example, different surface preparations. From these strength curves, it is.....possible to estimate the size of the flaws which control the damage. Microscopy studies of the fracture faces have been made to locate the nucleating flaws so that there is a crosscheck with the flaw sizes calculated. In cases where physical property data were not available, they were measured. Tables give data on hardness, fracture toughness, elastic moduli, stress wave and fracture velocities. (Keywords: Fracture, Impact, High-speed Photography, Hardness, Strength, Ceramics, Glasses.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 27, 1987
Accession Number
ADA178115

Entities

People

  • D. Townsend
  • John Edwin Field

Organizations

  • University of Cambridge

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Acoustic Waves
  • Boron Carbides
  • Cameras
  • Ceramic Materials
  • Chemistry
  • Crack Propagation
  • Failure Mode And Effect Analysis
  • Materials
  • Materials Science
  • Measurement
  • Mechanical Properties
  • Mechanics
  • Photography
  • Stress Waves
  • Stresses
  • Surface Waves
  • Toughness

Fields of Study

  • Materials science

Readers

  • Explosive Engineering.
  • Materials Science (Mechanical Engineering).
  • Powder metallurgy of Titanium alloys.