What is it about?
This research tests the V50 ballistic performance and penetration resistance of unidirectional woven basalt fiber laminated composites with three different combinations of ply orientations.
Featured Image
Photo by Mak on Unsplash
Why is it important?
Ballistic fabrics made from high-performance fibers such as para-aramid (synthetic) and basalt (natural) fibers, and composites utilizing these fabrics, are among the leading materials for soft body armor systems. Military and law enforcement operations need durable, lightweight, damage and moisture-resistant ballistic fabrics with superior energy absorbing capacity. Basalt fibers, which are extracted from igneous volcanic rocks, are natural fibers with mechanical and thermophysical properties that are generally comparable or superior to glass and other synthetic fibers but at a lower cost. This gives basalt-based composites a performance edge over existing material systems for potential application as anti-ballistic body armor.
Perspectives
Basalt fiber cannot only replace synthetic fibers, but it also has superior characteristics. It has a similar chemical composition as glass fiber but is stronger, and unlike most glass fibers is highly resistant to alkaline, acidic and salt. Compared to carbon and aramid fiber, it has the features of wider application temperature range -452° F to 1,200° F (-269° C to +650° C), higher oxidation resistance, higher radiation resistance, higher compression strength, and higher shear strength.
Dr. David Natarajan
Universiti Teknologi MARA
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: V50 Ballistic Performance of Unidirectional Woven Basalt Fiber Laminated Composites, November 2017, ASME International,
DOI: 10.1115/imece2017-70903.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
