Ballistic evaluation and damage characterization of 3‐D printed, alumina‐based ceramics for light armor applications

The goal of this work was to present results of mechanical characterization and ballistic investigation of 3‐D printed alumina (Al2O3)‐based armor plates, manufactured using two additive manufacturing‐based methods: pressurized spray deposition (PSD) and direct ink write (DIW), to determine the matu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inInternational journal of applied ceramic technology Vol. 17; no. 2; pp. 424 - 437
Main Authors Jones, Tyrone L., Vargas‐Gonzalez, Lionel R., Scott, Brian, Goodman, Bill, Becker, Benjamin
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Malden Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.03.2020
Subjects
additive manufacturing
alumina
Aluminum base alloys
Aluminum oxide
applications
Armor
ceramic engineering
Damage assessment
Flexural strength
Impact resistance
Impact velocity
Industry standards
Mechanical properties
Plates
Projectiles
Spray deposition
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Summary:The goal of this work was to present results of mechanical characterization and ballistic investigation of 3‐D printed alumina (Al2O3)‐based armor plates, manufactured using two additive manufacturing‐based methods: pressurized spray deposition (PSD) and direct ink write (DIW), to determine the maturity of these additive‐based processes against the industry standard process. The DIW plates exhibited superior hardness, flexural strength, and density compared to the PSD plates, and in many respects, even eclipsed some of the properties of the commercial isopressed (IP) material. Plates (90 mm × 90 mm × 8 mm) of these composition were manufactured for ballistic analysis in accordance with established ballistic characterization procedures, using a 50.8‐mm‐thick Aluminum 6061 plate as backing and witness plates in the case of penetration or deformation. Six alumina plates were examined ballisitically (one shot per plate) against the 12.7 mm APM2 projectile (45.9 g) at an impact velocity of 840 m/second. The plates that were manufactured using the DIW method provided a higher impact resistance than the PSD method, however, both did not perform as well as the traditionally processed IP material, due to the presence of defects introduced due to the printing processes.
ISSN:1546-542X
1744-7402
DOI:10.1111/ijac.13428