Something that may or may not interest people in terms of materials technology. These are currently maturing solutions, but when they will be ready, we can have interesting breaktrough in different platforms as well as individual soldier survivability.
Fullerene - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and
Aggregated diamond nanorod - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Especially ADNR is very interesting materials as being the hardest material known to humanity.
As we all known one of the most important aspects of materials used for ballistic protection is their hardness, the harder material is, the better it is... untill a point where too much hardness makes material brittle, ADNR solves this problem, because being in the same time incredibly hard, it is also flexible material, it is not brittle as diamonds or ceramics.
I found also one more interesting read.
Scientists working on carbon nanotube body armor
Researchers are working on a carbon nanotubes-based replacement for Kevlar:
The trait that makes carbon nanotubes so interesting for use in bulletproof vests is that the carbon nanotubes have excellent resistance to repeated ballistic impacts. In theory, that would mean that soldiers and police officers wouldn't need to replace body armor after taking hits and multiple hits in prolonged firefights would be more survivable than with current generation body armor.
Unlike Kevlar fibers that deform and loose effectiveness after struck, the carbon nanotube vest can withstand repeated impacts to the same spot without allowing the bullet to penetrate. The researchers say that body armor 600nm in thickness constructed form six sheets of the 100nm thick carbon nanotube yarns could bounce off a bullet with muzzle energy of 320 J.
That would be enough strength to stop low powered bullets fired from some handguns, but high velocity bullets fired from assault rifles carry much more muzzle energy than the current carbon nanotube fibers can withstand.
It is interesting. Of course the technology needs to mature, and further research is needed to develop armor versions against more capable weapons and ammunition, but everything is promising.
Another advantage of ultra hard materials based on carbon is that they are relatively light.
Of course in case of vehicles such composite armor would need to be still encased in vehicles steel structure cavities, but the weight reduction is more than possible + use of other solutions for weight reduction.
This means several things.
First armored vehicles and armor itself is not obsolete, in fact there will be more and more problems to defeat such armor.
Just imagine that we replace currently used composites with ADNR based ones, we will be actually abale to put composite armor all around vehicle, without making it too much heavy. Top attack weapons won't be a big concern anymore, vehicles sides and rear will gain improved protection, as well as it's frontal arc.
Not only this, but also other platforms than AFV's like tanks will benefit from it. Today the survivability of attack helicopters or fighter planes is low when they are hit by enemy projectiles or missiles, but with new lightweight materials stronger than the ones currently used, we can increase their survivability.
Of course there are other interesting developments currently slowly inducted for armor protection use, based on nanotechnology.
In Germany there was company known as IBD Deisenroth, currently Rhinemetall Chempro, they are manufacturing armor protection based on nanotechnology.
Rheinmetall Chempro GmbH - AMAP product family
Rheinmetall Chempro GmbH - AMAP-B
Rheinmetall Chempro GmbH - AMAP-SC
Advanced Modular Armor Protection - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Unfortunetly the old brochures are not avaiable anymore, but there was also a lot of interesting read there about the materials development.
Also Japanese claims that they are using nano-crystal steel in their newest Type 10 tank.
The US Army Future Combat Systems had a 20-29 tons heavy universal combat platform designated MGV (Manned Ground Vehicle), one of requirements was to provide platform with frontal protection against 45mm automatic cannons. For a platform with such weight and very thin armor, it could not be possible to achieve required protection levels without use of advanced armor solutions, and possible nanotechnology based materials.
So what we will gain here, thanks to these materials?
-Increased survivability trough improved armor protection.
-Reduced platform weight.
-Different platforms possible implementation.
-Other benefits.
The only problems that needs to be solved is how to manufacture ADNR's cheap, efficently, in form of armor plating, and in huge numbers. But when these problems will be solved, we can have real revolution in protection means.
Ah and there is also other benefit, currently used composite armors are divided in to two types, passive and reactive, passive type is using more efficnetly it's cavity space but is also less efficent against ammunition, while reactive type to work needs some space inside it's cavity, making it more effective against ammunition, but less efficently using space of it's cavity.
ADNR could have both, better efficency in using space, more efficent in projectile defeating, and it will be lighter.
The question is how many countries is investing in to nanotechnology applications in armor protection? I know USA is, there was a lot of talk about these materials in 1990's on different AUSA's. Germany is, Japan of course, thanks to Kunal Biswas I know that India is making some steps there, I know that in my country there are probably some very early conceptual works. France perhaps, UK?
Well probably all countries with advanced industrial and scientific base.
As a side note, with such armor technology, it can be interesting to actually see a ressurection of the Dreadnought/Battleship concept in Navies of the most advanced nations, or perhaps something similiar to Arsenal Ship concept from USA.
