Continuous Dynamic Processing of Ceramic Tiles for Ground Vehicle Protection

Ceramics and ceramic matrix composite are used as advanced armor materials for their lightweight and superior ballistic performance. The silicon carbide (SiC) armor material, processed by hot pressing at temperature >2000 ?C under high pressure for several hours has better ballistic performance compared to material by other processing routes. However, hot pressing is a slow batch process. Currently semi-continuous Pressure Assisted Densification (PAD) method for SiC material is under development for increasing the yield. The PAD process alone cannot meet the near future demand for ballistic grade SiC. Thus there is a need for alternate continuous processing approaches that have potential for high yields. We propose to develop a Dynamic Processing method for SiC material where high green bodies close to full density are produced in sub-millisecond compaction durations that will enable lower sintering temperature-duration cycles. Due to high green density, the special microstructures and grain sizes of the powders will be retained after sintering to yield high ballistic performance. The proposed dynamic processing method that combines fast compaction with a short sintering cycle has the potential to be developed into a continuous processing method to deliver high performance and high yield.