Computational investigation of ballistic-impact behavior and penetration resistance of a nacre-like ceramic/polymer laminated composite

Purpose Nacre is a biological material constituting the innermost layer of the shells of gastropods and bivalves. It consists of polygonal tablets of aragonite, tessellated to form individual layers and having the adjacent layers as well as the tablets within a layer bonded by a biopolymer. Due to its highly complex hierarchical microstructure, nacre possesses an outstanding combination of mechanical properties, the properties which are far superior to the ones that are predicted using techniques such as the rule of mixtures. Given these properties, a composite armor the structure of which mimics that of nacre may have improved performance over a monolithic armor having a similar composition and an identical areal density. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach In the present work, an attempt is made to model a nacre-like composite armor consisting of B4C tablets and polyurea tablet/tablet interfaces. The armor is next tested with respect to impact by a solid right circular cylindrical (SRCC) rigid projectile, using a transient non-linear dynamics finite-element analysis. The ballistic-impact response and the penetration resistance of the armor are then compared with that of the B4C monolithic armor having an identical areal density. Furthermore, the effect of various nacre microstructural features (e.g. surface profiling, micron-scale asperities, mineral bridges between the overlapping tablets lying in adjacent layers, and B4C nano-crystallinity) on the ballistic-penetration resistance of the composite armor is investigated in order to identify an optimal nacre-like composite armor architecture having the largest penetration resistance. Findings The results obtained clearly show that a nacre-like armor possesses a superior penetration resistance relative to its monolithic counterpart, and that the nacre microstructural features considered play a critical role in the armor-penetration resistance. Originality/value The present work indicates that for a given choice of armor material, penetration resistance may be improved by choosing a structure resembling that of nacre.