Effects of lateral dimension on the penetration of simulated EFP into alumina ceramic/steel targets

In order to discuss the effects of lateral dimension on the penetration of simulated EFP into the alumina ceramic/steel composite targets, the penetration of simulated EFP into various thickness alumina ceramic/steel composite targets with various lateral dimensions was numerically simulated using the Johnson-Holmquist constitutive model. The damage initiation and evolution of ceramic in penetrating process were shown, the residual penetration depths in the A3 steel back plate were given, and the ballistic limit thicknesses of the ceramic targets with various lateral dimensions against the penetration of simulated EFP were acquired. The numerical simulation results show that the differential and mass coefficients of ceramic increase with the increase in lateral dimension, and the more the ceramic is thick, the more the effect is obvious. The small lateral dimension ceramic tiles may suffer a decline of penetration-resisting performance due to the tensile stress from the boundary. However, the lateral dimension of ceramic tile should not be too big for penetration-resisting performance may be increased insignificantly when its lateral dimension is 16.7 times of projectile diameter.