Investigation on ballistic performance of armor ceramics against long-rod penetration

A series of depth-of-penetration (DOF) tests are carried out to investigate the ballistic performance of armor ceramics. Based on the experimental results, an improved differential efficiency factor (DEF) is presented, which demonstrates that the general ballistic efficiency index is independent of the ceramic thickness. It is also shown that the density, internal friction, and compression strength of ceramics are crucial factors that affect the ballistic performance of ceramics significantly through the interaction between the long-rod projectiles and thick-tile armor.