Investigation of Stab Protection Properties of Aramid Fibre-Reinforced 3D Printed Elements

Abstract

A stab resistant vest is a reinforced piece of body armour designed to resist knife or needle attacks of different energy levels specifically to the upper part of the body (chest and abdomen) to save lives. The majority of armours limit several comfort parameters, such as free locomotion, respiration, flexibility and light weight, which determine efficient use by wearers and their willingness to wear. Currently available armours are usually made of a single plate, and although often segmentation is used with just a few but still quite large pieces, the materials are compact and bulky to wear. In this study, stab protective armor elements (scale-like elements) of 3 mm thickness and 50 mm diameter were designed, produced (3D printed) and tested for performance. Aramid fibre was used for its strength, durability and process ability to develop protection elements at unidirectional and multidirectional filling angles during 3D printing. The specimens were tested according to VPAM KDIW 2004. The specimens designed and developed with multidirectional filling angles of aramid resist the puncturing energy level K1 (25 J) with a penetration depth less than the maximum allowed for the K1 energy level by VPAM. These specimens showed a high protection level of relative small thickness (3 mm) and light weight (6.57 grams for the estimated area A ≈ 1963.5 mm2) as compared to the currently certified armors for K1 (for example, the aluminum mass is 13.33 grams for 2 mm thickness and 50 mm diameter).

Stab-Resistant Polymers—Recent Developments in Materials and Structures

“…A special FDM apparatus, the Markforged Mark Two, was used by Sitotaw et al to produce nylon/aramid specimens with well-defined aramid filament orientations in each layer [ 51 ]. Stab tests were performed with an impact energy of 25 J according to class K1 of the VPAM-KDIW.…”

Flexural Properties of Thin-Walled Specimens with Square Hollow Sections 3D Printed from ABS Reinforced with Aramid Fibers

“…Many studies have been devoted to the properties of additively manufactured AFreinforced polymers [9][10][11][12][13][14]. One of them [9] focused on polyethylene terephthalate glycol (PETG) modified with CF and AF, which was obtained using FDM/FFF followed by annealing.…”

“…Better print quality and a wider industrial application of elements printed from filaments containing fibers, e.g., AF, can also be achieved by modernizing the FDM/FFF technology, e.g., using a dual extruder configuration [12]. In practice, AF-reinforced polymer can be used to 3D print protective armor, including stab vests [13]. The gear consists of scale-like elements attached to one another, each with a thickness of 3 mm and a diameter of 50 mm.…”

Investigation of Parameters of Fused Deposition Modelling 3D Prints with Compression Properties

“…Fused lament fabrication (FFF) is the most commonly used method for its easy operation and exibility in material utilization. ese days the FFF 3D printed objects are used in the aerospace [2] and construction industries [3], art and education [4], medical elds [5], and protection [6].…”