An Analysis of the System Effects in Woven Fabrics Under Ballistic Impact

Abstract

Following a brief review of prior work on fabric-based armor systems, the system effects that occur during the ballistic impact of woven fabric body armor materials are discussed from a conceptual framework developed to relate single yarn impact mechanics to fabric impact mechanics. The consequence of assembling yarns into single-ply fabric structures is discussed from this perspective. A steep strain gradient along yarns in the region of the transverse deflection of the fabric is related to the constraint imposed on them by neighboring yarns. Striking and residual velocity data, collected for single-ply fabric systems of Spectra, Kevlar 29, and nylon with various different yarn deniers and weave types, are used to establish the response of spaced armor systems. The system effects of assembling fabric plies into body armor systems are determined by comparing the response of spaced armor systems to actual multiple-ply systems. There is a pronounced decrease in energy absorption capacity for the Spectra and nylon systems.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Sep 01, 1992
Accession Number
ADA273891

Entities

People

  • Philip M. Cunniff

Organizations

  • United States Army Soldier Systems Center

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Body Armor
  • Composite Materials
  • Computer Programs
  • Engineering
  • Fabrics
  • Geometry
  • Impact Point
  • Materials
  • Materials Science
  • Mechanics
  • Projectiles
  • Shear Modulus
  • Simulations
  • Simulators
  • Standards
  • Stresses
  • Wave Propagation

Readers

  • Reinforced Composite Materials
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Space