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Strength of glass and glass ceramic was measured with a bar impact technique. High-speed movies show regions of tensile and compressive failure. The borosilicate glass had a compressive strength of at least 2.2 GPa, and the glass ceramic at least 4 GPa. However, the BSG was much stronger in tension than GC. In ballistic tests, the BSG was the superior armor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The performance of behaviour of brittle materials depends upon discrete deformation mechanisms operating during the loading process. The critical mechanisms determining the behaviour of armour ceramics have not been isolated using traditional ballistics. It has recently become possible to measure strength histories in materials under shock. The data gained for the failed strength of the armour are shown to relate directly to the penetration measured into tiles. Further the material can be loaded and recovered for post-mortem examination. Failure is by micro-fracture that is a function of the defects and then cracking activated by plasticity mechanisms within the grains and failure at grain boundaries in the amorphous intergranular phase. Thus it is the shock-induced plastic yielding of grains at the impact face that determines the later time penetration through the tile. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analytical model of normal ballistic impact on the ceramic/metal gradient armor, which is based on modified Alekseevskii-Tate equations, has been developed. The process of gradient armour impacted by the long rod can be divided into four stages in this model. First stage is projectile's mass erosion or flowing phase, mushrooming phase and rigid phase; second one is the formation of comminuted ceramic conoid; third one is the penetration of gradient layer and last one is the penetration of metal back-up plate. The equations of third stage have been advanced by assuming the behavior of gradient layer as rigid-plastic and considering the effect of strain rate on the dynamic yield strength. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A series of DOP tests with lateral confinement have been carried out and a linear relation between the residual penetration in RHA and the alumina thickness has been obtained. The rod configuration and the initial transient impact are the two factors that cause the gradual decrease of the differential efficiency factor (DEF) when the ceramic thickness is increased in literature. A new improved DEF definition is proposed to characterize the thick tile ceramic ballistic performance based on a more physical analysis. © 2006 American Institute of Physics [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]