Experimentally Simulating Ballistic Impact Events in High and Low Altitude Environments

Intermetallic, aluminum and zirconium, and thermite, molybdenum trioxide and aluminum, projectiles were launched using a high velocity impact ignition testing system (HITS) to study their reactivity in argon and air environments. The projectiles were consolidated from powder media and launched through a steel target plate before impacting an anvil. The experiments were completed in two test chambers. The first was a calorimetric chamber that was semi-sealed and provided quasi-static pressure data. Analysis of the pressure data revealed energy released from the system and an understanding of the environmental influence on performance. Further analysis of the pressure data included comparison to the theoretical heat of reaction and allowed quantification of the completeness of the metal reaction events. The second used a visual chamber to collect high speed videos of the penetration and impact events. The qualitative penetration and impact events are consistent with pressure data for illustrating fragmentation and reaction. The results of the test series demonstrated the thermite benefited from an on-board oxidizer for better material performance in an inert environment while the intermetallic benefited from two metal oxidization reactions in an air environment.