Dynamic Deformation and Failure Visualization Facility for Studying Armor Materials
Abstract
Quantitative in-situ experimental characterization across length and time scales is a cornerstone in furthering our understanding of complex material systems. Capturing the fundamental deformation and failure mechanisms at play leads to improved protective design capabilities, shaping the path to next-generation structural and amor material development. At the same time, there is currently a gap in quantitative microstructural mechanics in terms of understanding dynamic material behavior and response, because it is both challenging and often costly to design experimental apparatus to probe such dynamic events, as well as establish appropriate in-situ visualization metrology to physically observe and quantify active mechanisms at the appropriate length and time scales. We propose to eliminate this gap. Our proposed experimental configuration will extend current capabilities examining high rate loading under impact and hypervelocity impact scenarios into quantitative visualization at the sub microsecond time scales encountered in armor applications. This new experimental system is comprised of three major components: unique light gas accelerators (already established in the laboratory, USPTO# 62112690), an ultra-high-speed camera, and a high-performance data acquisition system. The instrumentation requested in the latter two items will allow for new insight on the following interdisciplinary research thrusts: • Light-weight Armor: examining the internal defect distribution on the dynamic behavior and understanding the competition between crack tip energetics during fracture/fragmentation and intrinsic and extrinsic toughening mechanisms in the development of either transparent armor and/or ceramic/polymer matrix composites • Terminal Ballistics: identifying key dynamic deformation and failure mechanisms corresponding to the interaction of system structure and ballistic response The proposed facility will directly visualize and quantify in-situ dynamic deformation, fracture and fragmentation mechanisms in order to develop improved physics-based microstructural models of armor materials. The facility will also provide collaborative research opportunities between undergraduates, graduates, and postdocs in high-strain-rate materials research
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Mar 05, 2022
- Source ID
- N000142212240
Entities
People
- Leslie Lamberson
Organizations
- Colorado School of Mines
- Office of Naval Research
- United States Navy