Toward Better Personal Ballistic Protection

Abstract : A Canadian ceramic armour team composed of scientists from several government researchorganizations in Canada was formed to explore the potential of composite ceramic materials forpersonal armour applications. Methods to impregnate and integrate single walled carbon nanotubesadditives into ceramic matrix of Al2O3 were explored. Various volume of single wall carbon nanotubesas well as different processing approaches were used to prepare samples in an attempt to optimizemechanical properties. The processing approaches investigated were pressureless sintering, hotpressing and hot isostatic pressing. Other Al2O3 ceramic composites were also fabricated andevaluated. These included Al2O3 composites reinforced with Al2O3 fiber fabric and Al2O3 fiber fabric withmulti wall carbon nanotubes grown onto the fiber surface. Those composites ceramic sample weretested, and the results were compared with some of the commercial single component armour ceramic.Boron nitride nanotubes, being thermally more stable then carbon nanotubes, were also investigated asan alternative to the single wall carbon nanotubes. In this paper, parameters influencing mechanicalproperties of composite ceramic armour are discussed. Results from mechanical properties are shown.