It is crucial to investigate the dynamic mechanical behavior of materials at the nanoscale to create nanostructured protective systems that have superior ballistic impact resistance. Inspired from recent experimental advances that enable ballistic materials testing at small scales, here we report a comparative analysis of the dynamic behavior of nanoscale thin films made from multilayer graphene (MLG), polymer, gold, and aluminum under high-speed projectile impact. We employ atomistic and coarse-grained (CG) molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to measure the ballistic limit velocity (V50) and penetration energy (Ep) of these nanoscale films and investigate their distinctive failure mechanisms over a wide range of impact velocities (Vi). For the local penetration failure mechanism observed in polymer and metal films, we find that the intrinsic mechanical properties influence Ep at low Vi, while material density tends to govern Ep at high Vi. MLG films uniquely show a large impact propagation zone (IPZ), which transfers the highly localized impact energy into elastic deformation energy in a much larger area through cone wave propagation. We present theoretical analyses that corroborate that the size of IPZ should depend not only on material properties but also on a geometrical factor, specifically, the ratio between the projectile radius and film thickness. This study clearly illustrates how material properties and geometrical factors relate to the ballistic penetration energy, thereby allowing a quantitative comparison of the nanoscale ballistic response of different materials.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
December 2018
Research-Article
Unraveling the Effect of Material Properties and Geometrical Factors on Ballistic Penetration Energy of Nanoscale Thin Films
Zhaoxu Meng,
Zhaoxu Meng
Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road,
Evanston, IL 60208
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road,
Evanston, IL 60208
Search for other works by this author on:
Sinan Keten
Sinan Keten
Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208;
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road
,Evanston, IL 60208;
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
e-mail: s-keten@northwestern.edu
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road
,Evanston, IL 60208
e-mail: s-keten@northwestern.edu
Search for other works by this author on:
Zhaoxu Meng
Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road,
Evanston, IL 60208
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road,
Evanston, IL 60208
Sinan Keten
Department of Civil and
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208;
Environmental Engineering,
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road
,Evanston, IL 60208;
Department of Mechanical Engineering,
Northwestern University,
Evanston, IL 60208
e-mail: s-keten@northwestern.edu
Northwestern University,
2145 Sheridan Road
,Evanston, IL 60208
e-mail: s-keten@northwestern.edu
1Corresponding author.
Manuscript received July 12, 2018; final manuscript received July 29, 2018; published online September 7, 2018. Assoc. Editor: Yashashree Kulkarni.
J. Appl. Mech. Dec 2018, 85(12): 121004 (11 pages)
Published Online: September 7, 2018
Article history
Received:
July 12, 2018
Revised:
July 29, 2018
Citation
Meng, Z., and Keten, S. (September 7, 2018). "Unraveling the Effect of Material Properties and Geometrical Factors on Ballistic Penetration Energy of Nanoscale Thin Films." ASME. J. Appl. Mech. December 2018; 85(12): 121004. https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4041041
Download citation file:
Get Email Alerts
Hamiltonian System-Based Symplectic Framework for Analytical Vibration Analysis of Microplates
J. Appl. Mech (December 2024)
Related Articles
Superior Dynamic Penetration Resistance of Nanoscale Multilayer Polymer/Metal Films
J. Appl. Mech (December,2020)
Atomistic and theoretical insights on nanoprecipitates-controlled strengthening behavior for optimum mechanical performance in nanotwinned NiCoCr alloys
J. Appl. Mech (January,0001)
Impact Response of Elasto-Plastic Granular Chains Containing an Intruder Particle
J. Appl. Mech (January,2015)
Peeling Silicene From Model Silver Substrates in Molecular Dynamics Simulations
J. Appl. Mech (October,2015)
Related Proceedings Papers
Related Chapters
Surface Analysis and Tools
Tribology of Mechanical Systems: A Guide to Present and Future Technologies
On the Evaluation of Thermal and Mechanical Factors in Low-Speed Sliding
Tribology of Mechanical Systems: A Guide to Present and Future Technologies
Novel and Efficient Mathematical and Computational Methods for the Analysis and Architecting of Ultralight Cellular Materials and their Macrostructural Responses
Advances in Computers and Information in Engineering Research, Volume 2