Ballistic studies on layered structures

This paper presents the ballistic behavior and penetration mechanism of metal-metal and metal-fabric layered structures against 7.62 armour piercing projectiles at a velocity of 840 +/- 15 m/s at 30 degrees angle of impact and compares the ballistic results with that of homogeneous metallic steel armour. This study also describes the effect of keeping a gap between the target layers. Experimental results showed that among the investigated materials, the best ballistic performance was attained with metal-fabric layered structures. The improvements in ballistic performance were analyzed in terms of mode of failure and fracture mechanisms of the samples by using optical and electron microscope, X-ray radiography and hardness measurement equipments. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.