Penetration Resistance of Building Materials against 7.62-mm Armor-Piercing Projectile

Abstract

This paper aims to determine the resistance of a wide range of building materials against projectile penetration using the depth-of-penetration (DOP) test and several well-established ballistic factors. Within the DOP test, the residual penetration into a backing aluminum alloy cylinder after passing through a sample with a defined thickness and bulk density was measured. The materials investigated here were plasters, mortars, autoclaved aerated concretes (AAC), normal-strength concretes (NSC), ultrahigh-performance concrete (UHPC), full fired-clay brick (FCB), granite, basalt, laminated glass, and ice. The findings show that the ballistic efficiency factors depend substantially on the material used, allowing one to identify materials with different levels of penetration resistance. Inferences drawn from this study can be used by engineers, architects, and contractors to assess the perforation resistance of various building materials to optimize their use against high-speed projectile impact. In addition, it is demonstrated that the uniaxial compressive strength of the building material might be misleading as the identifier of a material resistance against projectile impact because a significant difference in penetration resistance between materials with comparable compressive strength was found.