Ulrich Heisserer

Impacts and Waves in Dyneema® HB80 Strips and Laminates

Single-yarn impact results have been reported by multiple authors in the past, providing insight on the fundamental physics involved in fabric impact. This insight allowed developing full fabric models that were able to reproduce properly wave propagation, deflection, and ballistic limits. This paper proposes a similar experimental methodology but for a specific composite material made of ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene. The presence of the polyurethane matrix in the composite is expected to slow down wave propagation. But the high-speed photographic tests reported in this paper indicate that wave propagation in strips and single-layer material is similar to that expected for dry fiber. An explanation is proposed for this unexpected result. This paper also reports the critical velocities (i.e., impact velocities that fail the fibers immediately) measured for the composite material and compares them to the velocities expected from the theory. The velocity is accurately predicted when taking into account wave interactions in front of the projectile. Finally, tests on multilayer composites are presented. In particular, a flash produced under the projectile during the first few microseconds was recorded with high-speed video cameras. A simplified study of the temperature increment upon impact indicates that the material may be reaching the autoignition point. This mechanism is speculated to be the origin of the flash systematically observed.

High-performance ballistic fibers: Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE)

Abstract Dyneema® ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) fibers are the strongest and lightest fibers available. Its fiber composites are widely used in high-performance ballistic applications. The chapter describes the changes observed in mechanical properties going from single filaments to thick composites. The mechanism of penetration of composites sheets and panels is described, revealing simple characteristics. Numerical modeling approaches with increasing complexity and their sensitivities of the ballistic performance related to the fiber mechanical properties are discussed. Finally, the next generation of Dyneema® fibers and their composites are reported to enable drastic reductions of armor weight.

Numerical sensitivity studies of a UHMWPE composite for ballistic protection

Ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene (UHMWPE) has a high potential for ballistic armor applications due to the excellent weight specific strength inherent to this type of material. In this paper, a non-linear orthotropic material model for the UHMWPE, based on the product DYNEEMA ® HB26, is used for assessing the influence of the material properties on the ballistic performance. The model, implemented in the commercial hydrocode ANSYS AUTODYN uses initially linear-orthotropic elasticity, subsequent non-linear strain hardening, multiple stress-based composite failure criteria and post-failure softening. The strength model is coupled with a polynomial equation of state. An experimentally supported material data set for UHMWPE, presented before, is used as a baseline for the numerical studies on high velocity impact. Parameter sensitivities are studied for these impact situations. The numerical predictions are compared to available experimental data over a wide range of impact velocities (1 km/s up to 6 km/s). The objective of this paper is to assess the influence of different material parameters on the predictive capability of high velocity impact simulations and subsequently provide guidelines for the required experimental