EURODYMAT 2000 - 6th International Conference on Mechanical and Physical Behaviour of Materials under Dynamic Loading

J. Phys. IV France 10 (2000) Pr9-659-Pr9-664
DOI: 10.1051/jp4:20009110

Backplane response of ballistically impacted composites

J. van Hoof¹, M.J. Worswick² and K. Williams<sup>3

1</sup>  Crash-Safety Research Centre, TNO Road-Vehicles Research Institute, Schoemakerstraat 97, P.O. Box 6033, 2600 JA Delft, The Netherlands
²  Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario N2L 3G1, Canada
³  Defense Research Establishment Valcartier, 2459 Pie-XI Blvd. North, Val-Belair, Quebec G3J 1x5, Canada

Abstract
The ballistic impact response of woven composite helmet materials was analysed both experimentally and numerically. Ballistic impact tests were performed on flat panels, using different projectiles with a range of impact velocities. The penetration and backplane response of the composite panels were measured. A numerical model incorporating post-failure response was implemented in the LS-DYNA explicit dynamic finite element code to predict the penetration and backplane response of the composite material under ballistic impact. Close agreement was found between the simulated backplane displacement and the data obtained from the ballistic experiments. A linear relationship was observed between the maximum backplane displacement and the impact energy, at least within the range of impact energies considered. The model presented this study will be used to assess the degree of improvement in performance of current ballistic protection offered by design changes and the adoption of new materials.

© EDP Sciences 2000