Shielding effect of moving SiC ceramic fragments on jets

Abstract

Silicon carbide (SiC) is a promising candidate material as a component in lightweight and high-performance protective systems. However, its performance subjected to high-speed ejecta remains unclear. To this end, MD (molecular dynamics) simulations were utilized to investigate the jets induced damage and fragmentation of SiC ceramic. The effect of moving speed of SiC as a target and fragment size on the overall impact resistance were revealed. Then, we developed a damage efficiency criterion for the dispersion effect of the target on the jet and assessed the damage effectiveness at various target moving speeds. It is found that the moving speed of the fractured target significantly affects the effectiveness of resistance to ejecta. An optimized strategy to achieve better resistance to jets was proposed accordingly. Our work provides new insights into the damage and fragmentation of SiC and would benefit for the design of the protection system.