Defense Armor Funding - 2011 Requests

2010 was a fantastic year for defense appropriations for composite companies, in particular, composite armor received substantial funding. Even though it is only April, Senators are beginning to announce their 2011 requests. Senator Jim Bunning of Kentucky announced some of his requests, and looks like 2011 will be another stellar year for composite armor funding. Below are Bunning's related requests:

Project: De-Weighting Military Vehicles through Advanced Composites Manufacturing Technology

Amount Requested: $3,200,000

Recipient: MAG Industrial Automation Systems

Location: Boone County, KY

Description:  This is a research and development project for manufacturing of a machine to produce lighter-weight parts for military vehicles.  The project is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because it advances technology that delivers light-weight materials that improve fuel efficiency, cost savings, and enhanced combat readiness.

Project: Enabling Optimization of Reactive Armor 

Amount Requested: $5,000,000

Recipient: Ensign-Bickford Aerospace and Dynamics

Location: Muhlenberg County, KY

Description: These funds will be used to develop a replacement for current reactive armor used by the Army which will be reduced in weight, meet new threats, and increase overall safety. 

Project:  New Specialty Resins for Advanced Composite Armor

Amount Requested: $2,000,000

Recipient: Hexion Specialty Chemicals, Inc.

Location: Jefferson County, KY

Description: Funds will help develop a new range of matrix resins that address shortcomings in existing composite ballistic armor systems.  Achieving a better balance of properties will advance composite toughness, enhance fire, smoke, and toxicity performance to help our servicemen and women. 

Project: Tactical Mobility Consortium (TMC)

Amount Requested: $8,000,000

Recipient: University of Kentucky Research Foundation and M2 Technologies

Location: Fayette County, KY

Description:  The requested funding will advance years of aggressive research and development with the Marine Corps to deliver a critical force protection capability to the warfighter, allowing our military to provide the technical expertise required to assess the intended and unintended impacts of emerging technologies within the context of expeditionary warfare.  

Hopefully the military is actually requesting this research...

Source and Photo Credit: Senator Jim Bunning

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DARPA Composite Armor Development

Some great warfighter technologies come out of the DARPA. Here is a synopsis for the development of composite armor with private company Hardwire.

"In collaboration with the U.S. Army, the Hardwire® DARPA Armor program exploited unique hybrid composite materials in innovative geometries and systems to provide improved military vehicle armor protection at a significantly reduced weight compared to other technologies. This approach to armor design has provided a suite of armor solutions that can be tailored to meet mission and vehicle-specific weight and performance requirements in response to specific and emerging threats. New insights and infrastructure for armor manufacturing has changed hybrid, composite armor production from a labor-intensive, small-quantity process to a quality-controlled, high-throughput operation. The program applied automated high-precision production fabrication technologies to adaptively and rapidly produce panels to specification and at a cost comparable to that of traditional armor. These changes in the composite armor design and production paradigm have made life-saving armor systems available for warfighter vehicles"

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Shell Armor - Biomimicry Composites

Here is a new study on a deep water sea snail who has an amazing shell. It lives by geothermal vents so it experiences extreme fluctuations in temperature and acidity. Yet in this highly corrosive environment this snail shell still provides protection from predators.

It is no surprise that researchers are looking at this type of shell to provide insights for new armor. Biomimicry is one of my favorite topics here as there is much we can learn from mother nature. She has after all been inventing and modifying for millions of years.

What other "animal armor" is out there that perhaps we should look at? Take the desert tortoise for example, much like a Humvee in Afghanistan the tortoise's armor needs to be lightweight, strong, and withstand the harsh environments.

Photo Credit: Ken Wilcox via flicker

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Composite Armor gets Big Defense Funding

The US government is starting to put a good deal of money behind composite material research and development. Just a few weeks ago 2010 Defense budget was accepted, and with this came a good deal of special composite material projects, some of which I have discussed before here. In addition, here are some more announcements of composite related defense funding (almost all for composite armor):

- University of Delaware has been awarded $1,600,000 to spur the development of the next-generation composite technologies to support advanced watercraft that will be faster, stronger, stealthier, less costly, field repairable, have longer service life, and are up-armor capable to operate. Source

- The University of Delaware will additionally receive $3,200,000 for continued research to allow the Army's Composites Applied Research and Technology Center to successfully insert more durable, modular, lighter and protective composite armor and structures into its tactical vehicle fleets more quickly and affordably. Source

- INVISTA S.a.r.l. will receive $3,200,000 to increase the safety and protection of soldiers' uniforms with improved flame resistant, durable, lower cost materials to protect against Improvised Explosives Devices (IEDs). Source

- Armor Dynamics is set to receive $1.6 million to develop advanced composite and reactive armor. Source

- $3.9 million for Tex Tech Industries to produce Ballistic CORE Technology. The Ballistic CORE Technology project provides enhanced protection for troops against fragmentation from blasts and a variety of bullets. Source

- $1.6 million for Hodgdon Defense for research and development to reduce structural weight for high-speed composite craft through the use of lightweight composite materials. Source

- $5.3 million for the University of Maine in Orono. The appropriations funding will support critical programs to include the LGX High Temperature Acoustic Wave Sensors, woody biomass conversion to JP-8 Fuel, ballistic protection for remote forward operating bases, and cellulose nanocomposite technology to support operating base infrastructure and troop protection. Source

- $320 million for the Warren-based Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center and its National Automotive Center. That money will support such research into protecting Army vehicles against rocket propelled grenades and other explosives, strengthening combat and tactical vehicle armor, and developing fuel cell and hybrid electric vehicles. Source

- $3.2 million for Air Products to develop stronger and lighter composite armor for military vehicles Source

- $1.6 million for Bosch Rexroth Corporation in Lehigh County to develop a suite of simulators capable of screening and evaluating new materials, light weight structures, and high value subsystems and components on both wheeled and tracked vehicles. Source

- $1.6 million for Lawrence Technological University to develop and test stronger, lighter vehicle armor. Source

In addition to the DoD appropriations bill finding, the Army Research Labratory's is providing a $15 million Army contract to the University of Dayton Research Institute for composite armor systems from the future. Source

Did I forget any other government funding for composite armor?

Photo credit: nevada tubleweed via flickr

New Humvee Door Design

Here is an article from Defense News talking about new BAE Systems armor kits for the Humvee and how they reduce weight by 500 lbs. (Which actually doesn't seem like that much). What I found most interesting in the article, is that they redesigned the doors which:

"feature front and rear doors that swing open like cabinet doors, providing combat troops front- and rear-armor protection."

Most all military vehicle doors open like conventional automobiles, in parallel. However, it makes perfect sense to reverse this. The doors, up armored with composites, act as shields and protect from the front and rear.

I am willing to bet money this will save more then one life, and it is often the simple ideas which can have a great impact. Perhaps in other military and composite applications designers and engineers should take a step back, and question why.

Photo Credit: US Army Military Command via flicker

Why troops need composite armor

Watch the video above, although the soundtrack is rather odd, it sure does paint a picture of what the troops are experiencing in Iraq and Afghanistan. Between body armor and vehicle armor, there is an undisputed need to protect the soldiers from explosions.

As mentioned before, composite armor is playing an important role in force protection. The goal of composite armor is to have the most protection, lightest weight, yet still be affordable. New materials and a combination of materials are constantly lowering the weight of armor while increasing the protection.