The development of advanced small caliber weapon systems has resulted in rounds with more material penetration capabilities. The increased capabilities may mean that existing live-fire facilities will no longer be adequate for the training and certification of military and law enforcement personnel. Constraints on training in many live-fire shoot house facilities are already in place, with some allowing only single round impact during training. With little understanding of the probability of perforation, or failure, of existing containment systems, this study evaluates risk by studying the single round impact of small caliber ammunition against live-fire shoot house containment systems constructed from cellular concrete panels. An analytical and numerical study was conducted using an existing model for penetration of concrete developed by Forrestal, and the EPIC finite element code. These results are compared to experimental tests conducted by Goodman for rounds of various small calibers impacting cellular concrete live-fire facility containment systems. First, the empirical coefficient of the Forrestal model was calibrated using existing experimental results from Fabian against cellular concrete with varying densities and unconfined compressive strengths. Projectile and target characteristics were then modeled as continuous random variables, and Monte Carlo simulations were conducted using the validated analytical models to estimate the probability of a single round impact perforating the live-fire facility containment system. An importance sampling scheme was used to reduce the variance of the solution and provide a more accurate estimate of the probability of failure. To conduct numerical simulations, high pressure test data was collected from Sandia National Labs and the Engineer Research and Design Center to calibrate a new Holmquist-Johnson-Cook constitutive model specifically for the cellular concrete commonly used in live fire facilities. This material model was then used in the EPIC finite element code to simulate projectile impacts at varying velocities and angles of obliquity. The Forrestal model was found to provide accurate estimates of the depth of penetration when compared to experimental and numerical results at ordinance velocities and an estimate of the probability of failure is on the order of 1x10^-5^. This study provides useful analytical and numerical tools for the analysis of existing live-fire facilities against future and existing ammunition, and for the design of new facilities. When coupled with Monte Carlo simulation techniques, a risk-based approach to certify live-fire facilities for use with any variety of small arms ammunition can be applied, improving their safety and performance against a wide range of impacts.


Constitutive Modeling and Initial Validation of Cellular Concrete Subjected to Large Strains and High Strain Rates

Division / Sponsors: 
Aerospace, Bioengineering, Applied Mechanics, Design Engineering Division, Advanced Energy Systems, Manufacturing Engineering Division, Noise Control and Acoustics, Nondestructive Evaluation, Diagnosis, and Prognosis (NDPD), Nuclear Engineering Division, Process Industries Division, Fluids Engineering, Heat Transfer, Materials, Microelectromechanical Systems, Safety Engineering and Risk Analysis, Computers & Information in Engineering


Paper Proceedings: https://asmedigitalcollection.asme.org/IMECE/IMECE2020/volume/84478

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