• Composites Research
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.1-7
• /
• 2007

Manufacturing process of the shear thickening fluid(STF) and evaluation of the ballistic penetration resistance performance of the Kevlar-STF composites were studied. STF was made from silica and ethylene glycol, and the Kevlar-STF composite was made by impregnating the STF into the Kevlar fabric. Specimens including neat Kevlar woven fabrics and Kevlar-STF composites with two types of silica were prepared and carried out the ballistic tests. From the results STFs represented shear thickening behavior irrespective of the silica type, and Kevlar-STF composite with spherical silica showed best ballistic penetration resistance performance among them. Especially the specimens of Kevlar-STF composites with spherical silica showed radial fiber deformation by the projectile during the tests, that was somewhat different deformation behavior from those of the neat Kevlar fabrics shown fiber pull-out phenomena or fracture.

• International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sciences
• /
• v.14 no.2
• /
• pp.140-145
• /
• 2013

The development of high performance fabrics have advanced body armor technology and improved ballistic performance while maintaining flexibility. Utilization of the shear thickening phenomenon exhibited by Shear Thickening Fluids (STF) has allowed further enhancement without hindering flexibility of the fabric through a process of impregnation. The effect of STF impregnation on the ballistic performance of fabrics has been studied for impact velocities below 700 m/s. Studies of STF-impregnated fabrics for high velocity impacts, which would provide a transition to significantly higher velocity ranges, are lacking. This study aims to investigate the effect of STF impregnation on the high velocity impact characteristics of Kevlar fabric by effectively dispersing silica nanoparticles in a suspension, impregnating Kevlar fabrics, and performing high velocity impact experiments with projectile velocities in the range of 1 km/s to compare the post impact characteristics between neat Kevlar and impregnated Kevlar fabrics. 100 nm diameter silica nanoparticles were dispersed using a homogenizer and sonicator in a solution of polyethylene glycol (PEG) and diluted with methanol for effective impregnation to Kevlar fabric, and the methanol was evaporated in a heat oven. High velocity impact of STF-impregnated Kevlar fabric revealed differences in the post impact rear formation compared to neat Kevlar.

• Explosives and Blasting
• /
• v.41 no.3
• /
• pp.1-12
• /
• 2023

A basic assessment of techniques to mitigate the risk of blast shock waves from proximity explosions was conducted. Common existing techniques include using mitigant materials to form barriers around the explosive or in the direction of propagation of the shock wave. Various explosive energy dissipation mechanisms have been proposed, and research on blast shock wave mitigation utilizing impedance differences has drawn considerable interest. In this study, shear thickening fluid (STF) was applied as a blast mitigation material to evaluate the effectiveness of STF mitigation material on explosion shock wave mitigation through explosion experiments and numerical analysis. As a result, the effectiveness of the STF mitigant material in reducing the explosion shock pressure was verified.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
• /
• v.32 no.4
• /
• pp.272-284
• /
• 2022

This study conducted tunnel blasting to evaluate the blasting effect of a shear thickening fluid-based blasting stemming material and a sealed plug device under development. STF single stemming and STF stemming materials were combined with plugs to a tunnel blasting to which the SAV-Cut method was applied, and the advanced rate and fragmentation of tunnel blasting muck pile were compared when sand stemming was used. Tunnel advanced rate was evaluated using a 3D laser scanner. When the STF stemming material and STF stemming material with the plug were compared to the sand stemming material, it increased by 5.7 and 5.36%, respectively. As a result of evaluation of the fragmentation of tunnel blasting muck pile, it was the best when the STF stemming material was applied, and it decreased by about 61% compared to the case of sand stemming blasting. However, no significant improvement in blasting effect was observed with the application of plug devices.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.20 no.3
• /
• pp.17-24
• /
• 2007

In this study, the failure modes by ballistic impacts were studied both for a neat Kevlar woven fabric and a Kevlar liquid armor impregnated with shear thickening fluid (STF) containing silica particles. These two materials showed quite different failure modes macroscopically in ballistic impacts tests used by Cal.22 FSP and 9mm FMJ bullet. Yarn pull-out for the neat Kevlar woven fabric and yarn fracture occurred partially through all plies from 1st ply to last one for the STF-Kevlar are an important energy absorption mechanisms. The results observed by S.E.M showed commonly fiber damage which are torn skin in the longitudinal fiber direction, fiber split axially and fiber fracture for two materials. The reasons why STF-kevlar liquid armor material exhibits excellent ballistic performance are as follow: firstly the increased friction forces between yarn-yarn and fabric-fabric covered with silica particles and secondary the evolution of shear thickening phenomenmon resulting in suppression of yarn mobility.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.21 no.2
• /
• pp.15-24
• /
• 2008

In this study, shear thickening fluid (STF) filled with rigid nano silica particles was impregnated in plain woven Kevlar fabrics to improve the impact resistance performance. The nano silica particles with an average diameter of 100nm, 300nm, and 500nm were used to make shear thickening fluid to estimate the effect of particle size on the impact behavior of STF impregnated Kevlar fabrics. The yam pull-out and frictional tests were conducted to estimate the effect of impregnated STF on the frictional characteristics. The test results showed that the friction forces were dramatically increased at the STF onset shear strain rates that were measured in preliminary rheology tests. The low speed impact tests were performed using the drop test machine. The results showed that the impregnated STF improved the impact resistance performance of the Kevlar fabrics in terms of the impact energy absorption and the deformation. It has been shown through tests that the impregnated STF affects the interfacial friction which contributes to improve the energy absorption in the Kevlar fabrics. Especially, the impregnation of the STF with the smaller particle size into the Kevlar fabrics showed the better performance in impact energy absorption.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Manufacturing Process Engineers
• /
• v.16 no.6
• /
• pp.21-28
• /
• 2017

This study investigated Kevlar fabric impregnated with shear thickening fluid (STF). The STF performance was assessed by comparing bullet-proof characteristics of STF impregnated and pure Kevlar material. The analysis employed a circular steel ball as the nominal warhead, and bulletproof characteristics were evaluated by the warhead residual velocity. Various initial velocity conditions were employed, with different bulletproof characteristics apparent for each velocity region. The results of this study provide effective data for future bulletproof material design and application.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Military Science and Technology
• /
• v.19 no.3
• /
• pp.330-338
• /
• 2016

Impregnation of shear-thickening fluid(STF) into high-strength fabrics makes a considerable improvement on the ballistic performance of fabric armors. Understanding dissipation augmentation due to shear thickening effects on yarn-yarn and yarn-projectile friction is of great importance in liquid armor research. This paper takes a shearthickening effect into account in numerical simulations by using a velocity-dependent friction model. Impact simulations were performed to validate the friction model as well as to evaluate the ballistic performance of STF-fabrics. Impact simulations on neat fabrics were also conducted to provide baseline results for comparison.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.21 no.5
• /
• pp.23-30
• /
• 2008

Stab threats using sharp edged or pointed Instruments could be easily encountered by police officers or soldiers. In this study, the shear thickening fluids (STF) was impregnated into Kevlar fabrics to improve the stab protection and the resistance of STF impregnated Kevlar fabrics was experimentally investigated. The puncture and cut resistance were tested using a drop test machine withspike and knife indenters fabricated based on the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) standard. The STF was filled with spherical $SiO_2$ particles having an average diameter of 100nm, 300nm, and 500nm. The effect of particle size on puncture and cut resistance of STF impregnated Kevlar fabrics was also investigated. The measured impact load histories showed that STF impregnation into fabric leads to withstand higher peak loads than that of neat fabrics under spike test. The test results showed that Kevlar impregnated with STF exhibit remarkable improvements in puncture resistance while it is slightly influential on the cut resistance. Specifically, particle size is the one of the dominant factors controlling fabric resistance to puncture under spike impact test.

• Composites Research
• /
• v.29 no.1
• /
• pp.24-32
• /
• 2016

Ballistic impact analyses have been performed with the Kevlar fabric impregnated with STF(shear thickening fluid). Multi-layer laminates modeled with 3D isoparametric shell elements were used for the performance analysis and their results are compared with experimental results. Both experiments and numerical analyses have been done to verify the usefulness of STF to enhance the impact resistance performance. The results showed that STF increases friction within a bundle of fiber, and this phenomena is more apparent in the velocity range of under near 450 m/s. In this research, it is emphasized that FEA analyses of STF impregnated Kevlar fabric laminate were successfully conducted using shell elements. Moreover, the effectiveness of the technique and accuracy were verified through the comparison with reliable experimental data.