Investigation on the ballistic behavior of Al2O3/Al2024 laminated composites

Laminated composites have great potential in producing lightweight armors. This study presents the experimental study of the low velocity ballistic behavior of Al2O3/Al2024 (alumina/aluminum) laminated composites against 7.62 × 51 mm armor piercing (AP) projectiles. The effects of mechanical properties of backing material and laminating type as well as the adhesive type on the ballistic performance of the composite armor were investigated. Furthermore, an inspection of the fracture surfaces was carried out to analyze deformation mode by using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). The test results showed that utilization of alumina as a front layer and Al2024-T6 as a backing layer in the composites with an alumina/aluminum thickness ratio in the range of 1–3 maintained the highest ballistic performance. Moreover, composites bonded with polyurethane exhibited more resistance to spalling of ceramic tiles than those bonded with epoxy, even though adhesive type had no appreciable effect on the ballistic performance of the composites.