Ballistic impact response of Kevlar® reinforced thermoplastic composite armors

The ballistic impact response of thermoplastic-based composite armors made from Kevlar (R) fabric and polypropylene (PP) matrix has been investigated against ballistic test standard NU-STD 0106.01 Type IIIA. Kevlar (R) fabrics of different architectures, namely 2D plain woven, 3D orthogonal and 3D angle interlock fabrics, were produced and used as reinforcements to fabricate composite armor panels, using compression molding technology. Interfacial property between PP and Kevlar (R) was improved by adding a coupling agent called maleic anhydride grafted PP. Reduced density was observed in Kevlar (R) thermoplastic based composites as compared to that of the thermoset-based laminates. Ballistic impact tests were imparted with 9 mm full metal jacket (FMJ) on armor panels having different fabric architecture. Ballistic test results revealed that 2D armor was 2.4-7% more susceptible to damage than 3D armors. Hydrocode simulations were carried out using ANSYS AUTODYN v. 14.0 to obtain an estimate for the ballistic limit velocity and simulate failure modes. Post-impact damage patterns obtained from the simulations were compared with the experimental results to assess the performance of the simulations. Good correlation between the hydrocode simulations and experiments was found, both in terms of failure modes and damage patterns. 3D composite armors were able to confront the 9 mm FMJ projectile; however, the 2D plain woven armors failed. The increase in the ballistic limit from 2D plain woven armor to 3D orthogonal and 3D angle interlock armors was 16.44% and 20%, respectively, indicating the effect of fabric architecture. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.