Ballistic performance of confined 99.5%-Al2O3 ceramic tiles

An experimental investigation has been performed to investigate the ballistic performance of ceramic tiles as a function of the extent of confinement. A secondary objective of the study was to generate experimental data for ceramic modelling validation studies. Two impact velocities were used for the testing, nominally 1.52 and 1.79 km/s. The depth-of-penetration (DOP) into the backup steel cylinder was the measure of penetration performance. 99.5%-pure aluminium oxide tiles, 2.54-cm thick, were used for the study. Confinement was changed by varying the type and thickness of a cover plate. Differential ceramic tile performance, calculated from the DOP measurements and baseline penetration into semi-infinite steel, varied in the range approximate to 1.5-2.8, depending upon the type of confinement and the impact velocity. The data are compared with other data in the literature, and conclusions are made concerning ceramic tile performance as a function of confinement and impact velocity. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.