Gelatine backing affects the performance of single-layer ballistic-resistant materials against blast fragments
File(s)
Published version
Author(s)
Nguyen, Thuy Tien
Meek, George
Breeze, John
Masouros, Spyros
Type
Journal Article
Abstract
Penetrating trauma by energized fragments is the most common injury from explosive devices, the main threat in the contemporary battlefield. Such devices produce projectiles dependent upon their design, including preformed fragments, casings, glass, or stones; these are subsequently energized to high velocities and cause serious injuries to the body. Current body armor focuses on the essential coverage, which is mainly the thoracic and abdominal area, and can be heavy and cumbersome. In addition, there may be coverage gaps that can benefit from the additional protection provided by one or more layers of lightweight ballistic fabrics. This study assessed the performance of single layers of commercially available ballistic protective fabrics such as Kevlar®, Twaron®, and Dyneema®, in both woven and knitted configurations. Experiments were carried out using a custom-built gas-gun system, with a 0.78-g cylindrical steel fragment simulating projectile (FSP) as the impactor, and ballistic gelatine as the backing material. FSP velocity at 50% risk of material perforation, gelatine penetration, and high-risk wounding to soft tissue, as well as the depth of penetration (DoP) against impact velocity and the normalized energy absorption were used as metrics to rank the performance of the materials tested. Additional tests were performed to investigate the effect of not including a soft-tissue simulant backing material on the performance of the fabrics. The results show that a thin layer of ballistic material may offer meaningful protection against the penetration of this FSP. Additionally, it is essential to ensure a biofidelic boundary condition as the protective efficacy of fabrics was markedly altered by a gelatine backing.
Date Issued
2020-07
Date Acceptance
2020-06-10
Citation
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology, 2020, 8, pp.1-10
ISSN
2296-4185
Publisher
Frontiers Media
Start Page
1
End Page
10
Journal / Book Title
Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology
Volume
8
Copyright Statement
© 2020 Nguyen, Meek, Breeze and Masouros. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY) (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
License URL
Sponsor
The Royal British Legion
Engineering & Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC)
Identifier
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fbioe.2020.00744/full
Grant Number
Centre for Blast Injury Studie
EP/S021752/1
Subjects
0699 Other Biological Sciences
0903 Biomedical Engineering
1004 Medical Biotechnology
Publication Status
Published
Article Number
744
Date Publish Online
2020-07-02