Performance study of jute -epoxy composites/sandwiches under normal ballistic impact

This study is undertaken to explore the use of natural fi ber Jute -epoxy (JE), Jute -epoxy -rubber (JRE) sandwich composite for ballistic energy absorption. Energy absorbed and residual velocities for these composites are evaluated analytically and through Finite Element Analysis (FEA). FE analysis of JE plates is carried out for different thicknesses (3, 5,10 and 15 mm). JE plates and JRE sandwiches having the same thickness (15 mm) are fabricated and tested to measure residual velocity and energy absorbed. The analytical results are found to agree well with the results of FE analysis with a maximum error of 9%. The study on JE composite plate reveals that thickness in fl uences the energy absorption. Experimental and FE analysis study showed that JRE sandwiches have better energy absorption than JE plates. Energy ab- sorption of a JRE sandwich is about 71% greater than JE plates. Damages obtained from FEA and testing are in good agreement. SEM analysis con fi rms composites failed by fi ber rupture and fragmentation. Copyright ? 2020 China Ordnance Society. Publishing Services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY -NC -ND license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).