A Computational Investigation of the Multi-Hit Ballistic-Protection Performance of Laminated Transparent-armor Systems

Multi-hit ballistic-protection performance of a prototypical laminated glass/polycarbonate transparent armor is investigated using a series of transient nonlinear dynamics analyses of armor impact with a sequence of four M2AP full metal jacket (FMJ) armor-piercing bullets. All calculations were carried out using ABAQUS/Explicit commercial finite element program (ABAQUS Version 6.7, User Documentation, Dessault Systems, 2007), and the computational results obtained were compared to their experimental counterparts obtained by Dolan (Ballistic Transparent-armor Testing Using a Multi-hit Rifle Pattern, Bachelors, Thesis, Kettering University, December 2007). The comparison revealed that (a) The proposed computational procedure can reasonably well account for the observed multi-hit ballistic-protection performance of the laminated transparent armor; (b) The role of prior bullet hits in reducing armor??s ballistic-protection performance is clearly revealed; (c) The role of polycarbonate lamina in preventing glass fragments from entering the vehicle interior is clearly demonstrated; and (d) Experimentally observed inability of the transparent armor to defeat 0.50-caliber Fragment Simulating Projectiles (FSPs) is confirmed.