Experimental study of interface defeat in confined ceramic targets

Recent experimental studies by Hauver et al. reveal that the ballistic performance of ceramic targets depends entirely on how the ceramic is confined in a composite target. If the ceramic confinement is preserved, the penetrator is consumed by lateral flow at the ceramic-cover plate interface; this mechanism is known as interface defeat. A number of variables are important in achieving optimum ballistic performance. The most relevant are: shock attenuation through the use of an attenuator plate, ceramic-cover plate interface, ceramic confinement pre-stress, ceramic-back surface interface properties, and shear localization sensitivity of the cover plate and penetrator materials. In this work several diagnostic tools are used to gain insight of the ballistic performance of ceramic targets. Stress histories produced at the cover plate-ceramic interface and ceramic-back plate interface are recorded with in-material gauges. Velocity measurements, at the back plate free surface, are recorded with velocity interferometry