Biomorphic SiSiC-materials for lightweight armour

Lightweight ceramic armour systems offer high ballistic protection combined with a significantly lower areal weight than conventional armour systems on the basis of steel or aluminum. Biomorphic SiSiC-ceramics, based on wooden preforms and manufactured via the liquid silicon infiltration (LSI), are considered promising new armour materials due to their high potential for the manufacture of complex shaped structures at low costs. The physical properties of different, biomorphic SiSiC-materials were determined. The ballistic performance was studied on sample plates 100 mm x 100 mm with armour piercing ammunition (7.62 × 51 mm AP). The results were compared to the ballistic performance of commercially available alumina tiles, namely ALOTEC 96SB and 99SB, which were tested under the same conditions. In this paper, the manufacturing process of biomorphic SiSiC-materials, the material properties and the results of the impact tests are presented.