Numerical investigation of ballistic impact on multilayered ceramic/metal target plate with or without air gap

The present work is based on numerical simulations of the ballistic behavior of multilayered alumina/aluminum armor plates of varying thicknesses against normal impacts of ogive-nosed steel projectiles. The numerical simulation and the associated models have been validated against published experimental results. A total of nine distinct combinations of ceramic–metal armor plates are impacted normally at different strike velocities, ranging from 200 to 1200 m/sec to determine the residual velocities and ballistic limit velocities of the projectile for each combination of target plate. In a few circumstances, a small air gap has been considered in a combination to compare its ballistic performance to that of a target without an air gap. The optimal ratio of ceramic in a ceramic metal bilayered target plate is determined numerically. This article visualizes the progressive damage of target plates and projectiles at various strike velocities to explore the effects of thicknesses and relative positions of ceramic layers in ceramic/metal armors of a given total thickness in terms of ballistic limit velocity, deformation, and damage of the projectile and target plate.