Investigations on influence of rifle automatics system action on values of energetic efficiency coefficient of muzzle brakes

The objective of the paper was to compare values of the muzzle brake efficiency coefficient for a rifle with active or inactive automatics systems. Special laboratory stand designed for investigating the recoil process was used. The motion of the rifle was detected by the use of the laser interferometer and the optical camera. The recoil velocity time courses were determined by smoothing and differentiation of experimental position records. The results of the experiments indicated that in the case of an active automatics system two values of the recoil velocity can be used for calculation of the energetic efficiency coefficient: the maximum recoil velocity and the final recoil velocity at the end of the automatics action cycle. The values of the coefficient, calculated using these two values of the recoil velocity, distinctly differ. However, it was shown that their values indicate the same relation between the efficiency of various muzzle brakes. The value of the efficiency coefficient, determined on the basis of the final recoil velocity value, is practically the same as that determined on the basis of the final recoil velocity value for the rifle with an inactive automatics system.     

Round robin using the depth of penetration test method on an armour grade alumina

The depth of penetration (DOP) method is a well-known ballistic test method for characterisation and ranking of ceramic armour materials. The ceramic tile is bonded to a backing material of semi-infinite thickness, and the penetration depth of the projectile gives a measure of the performance of the ceramic. There is, however, an inherent variability in the results from this test method. In this work, the accuracy and the variability of the DOP method has been investigated in a round robin exercise. Six ballistic test centres took part in the exercise. A test protocol was developed, in which the threat type (projectile and impact conditions) and a procedure on how to prepare the targets were specified. The targets consisted of alumina tiles of two different thicknesses that were bonded to polycarbonate backing cubes. Two different 7.62 mm armour piercing projectiles were employed; one with a hard steel core and one with a tungsten carbide core. The projectiles and the other materials all came from single material batches in order to avoid batch-to-batch variations in material properties. These materials were distributed between the ballistic test centres. The test results of the different ballistic test facilities were collected and compared. There was not a lot of variation between the average DOP values obtained at each laboratory, but the variation in penetration depth between shots was high. The consequence of this variation may be less confidence in the test results, and a statistical method was used to evaluate the required number of tests that are sufficient to obtain an average result with high confidence. In most cases, the required number of tests is much higher than what is practically feasible. This work was conducted as part of the European Defence Agency-project CERAMBALL.     

美军针对高超声速武器的反导预警能力发展态势分析

高超声速武器具有飞行速度快、精确毁伤和高效突防等特点,具有重要的战略威慑和实战应用价值,它能够大幅改变未来战争的态势,已成为大国打破战略平衡、打赢未来战争的新型“杀手锏”。随着高超声速武器逐步走向战场,世界各主要国家的反导防御体系将向更高预警维度、更快反应速度和更大打击力度的天地一体联合防御方向发展。本文分析了高超声速武器作战优势及其对未来战争的影响和威胁,阐述了美军现有反导预警能力的基本架构与能力缺陷,对其未来反高超声速武器的预警能力建设及发展态势进行了研判与预测。美军“优先发展天基反导作战体系,发挥低轨卫星主体作用”的反高超声速武器发展思路对于军队反导反高超声速武器能力建设具有一定的启示和借鉴作用。     

旋转自稳定末敏子弹运动特性分析

为研究某型旋转自稳定末敏子弹运动特性,充分考虑末敏子弹的结构强非对称特点和其初始抛撒条件,引入动不平衡弹体模型,推导超大攻角条件下子弹的空间6自由度弹道方程,计算分析子弹的稳态扫描运动特性。结果表明:子弹体的质量分布非对称和初始抛撒角速度是子弹药实现稳态扫描运动的必要条件;子弹扫描频率只由抛撒角速度ω_(σ0)决定,且和ω_(σ0)正相关;初始俯仰角φ_(a0)≥0°时,扫描角整体呈增大趋势,初始俯仰角φ_(a0)0°时,扫描角整体变化趋势为先减小后增大;扫描面积与配重-全弹质量比、初始俯仰角、初始偏航角和初始角速度呈正相关,与均质圆柱体转动惯量比呈负相关。     

弹体入水弹道研究综述

描述了弹体入水过程4个阶段撞击、流动形成、开空泡、空泡闭合的基本特征．分别讨论了弹体形状、入水角、入水速度、攻角、初始角速度和水域环境对入水弹道的影响．综述了弹体入水弹道的实验与理论研究概况,提出了有待进一步研究的工作．     

A comparison of the ballistic behaviour of conventionally sintered and additively manufactured alumina

Production of ceramic armour solutions on-demand/in-theatre would have significant logistical and military advantages. However, even assuming that such technologies could be successfully deployed in the field, such near net-shape manufacturing technology is relatively immature compared to conventional sintering of ceramics. In this study, the ballistic performance of a series of additively manufactured (AM)/rapidly-prototyped (RP) alumina tiles of 97.2% of the density of Sintox FA™ were investigated using both forward- and reverse-ballistic experiments. These experiments, undertaken with compressed gas-guns, employed the depth-of-penetration technique and flash X-ray as primary diagnostics to interrogate both efficiency of penetration and projectile-target interaction, respectively. The RP alumina was found to exhibit useful ballistic properties, successfully defeating steel-cored (AP) 7.62 × 39 mm BXN rounds at velocities of up-to c.a. 850 m/s, while exhibiting comparable failure modes to conventionally sintered armour-grade Sintox FA™. However, where a <1% by vol. Cu dopant was introduced into the RP material failure modes changed dramatically with performance dropping below that of conventionally sintered alumina. Overall, the results from both sets of experiments were complimentary and clearly indicated the potential of such RP materials to play an active role in provision of real-world body armour solutions provided quality control of the RP material can be maintained.     

Statistical variability and fragility assessment of ballistic perforation of steel plates for 7.62 mm AP ammunition

The paper describes field test results of 7.62 × 51 mm M61 AP (armour piercing) ammunition fired into mild steel targets at an outdoor range. The targets varied from 10 mm to 32 mm in thickness. The tests recorded penetration depth, probability of perforation (i.e., complete penetration), muzzle and impact velocities, bullet mass, and plate yield strength and hardness. The measured penetration depth exhibited a variability of approximately ±12%. The paper then compared ballistic test results with predictive models of steel penetration depth and thickness to prevent perforation. Statistical parameters were derived for muzzle and impact velocity, bullet mass, plate thickness, plate hardness, and model error. A Monte-Carlo probabilistic analysis was then developed to estimate the probability of plate perforation of 7.62 mm M61 AP ammunition for a range of impact velocities, and for mild steels, and High Hardness Armour (HHA) plates. This perforation fragility analysis considered the random variability of impact velocity, bullet mass, plate thickness, plate hardness, and model error. Such a probabilistic analysis allows for reliability-based design, where, for example, the plate thickness with 95% reliability (i.e. only 1 in 20 shots will penetrate the wall) can be estimated knowing the probabilistic distribution of perforation. Hence, it was found that the plate thickness to ensure a low 5% probability of perforation needs to be 11–15% thicker than required to have a 50/50 chance of perforation for mild steel plates. Plates would need to be 20–30% thicker if probability of perforation is reduced to zero.