Preliminary Investigation on Bulletproof Panels Made from Ramie Fiber Reinforced Composites for NIJ Level II, IIA, and IV

Abstract

Ramie (Boehmeria nivea) is one of the strongest natural cellulose fibers. Optimizing abundant resources ramie as a candidate materials used for reinforcing in polymeric composite material is a must to obtained high-performance natural fibers reinforced polymer especially for bulletproof panel or high-impact flexibility safer structures. Ramie woven was treated using common chemical solvents that were ethanol, methyl ethyl ketone, acetone, and silane as coupling agent. Composite panels were made by hand lay-up process with epoxy as a matrix. These prototype bulletproof panels were to be believed lighter in weight and much lower economic cost than conventional bulletproof panels made from ceramic plate, Kevlar/aramid composite, and steel-based material as a popular today in military standard antiballistic equipments. From the bullet testing result, it showed that panel could be able to resist the penetration of high-impact projectile for level II with some fractures phenomenon. Level IV ballistic testing showed that all prototype panel could not resist the high-impact velocity of the projectile yet. It was found that ramie Downloaded from fibers have sufficient breaking strength and toughness for level II bullet testing, although still needs improvements to optimize process parameters to meet a very high military standard and application KEY WORDS: Ramie woven composite, bulletproof panel, ballistic testing, NIJ standard.

A Review on Natural Fiber Reinforced Polymer Composite for Bullet Proof and Ballistic Applications

“…Another research study was made on bulletproof panel applications in order to investigate the impact of chemical solvents such as ethanol, acetone, methyl ethyl ketone together with a silane as coupling agent on the ramie woven fiber [ 99 ]. As the world is looking forward towards the safety of the environment as well as the need for improved performance and low cost, this bulletproof panel is suitable to be developed as a new material which is believed having lower economical cost than conventional bulletproof available in the market that were made mostly from Kevlar/aramid composite, steel-based material and ceramic plate.…”

The use of ramie fibers as reinforcements in composites

“…also compared experimentally measured tensile moduli with micromechanical model predictions for three epoxy composites reinforced by cotton, ramie and lyocell fi ber, respectively [56] . Marsyahyo and Rochardjo made ramie fi ber woven fabric-reinforced epoxy composites and evaluated whether the composite can be used for bulletproof panel applications [57] . Yang and Li made composites with epoxy and ramie fi ber, glass fi ber, and carbon fi ber, respectively, and compared their acoustic properties [58] .…”

“…Ramie woven fabric-reinforced epoxy composite bulletproof panel prototypes were designed by Marsyahyo and Rochardjo [57] . The prototypes were lighter and less expensive than conventional bulletproof panels made from ceramic plate, Kevlar/aramid composites, or steel-based material.…”

Natural Fibers as Sustainable and Renewable Resource for Development of Eco-Friendly Composites: A Comprehensive Review

“…They are used to make sweaters in combination with cotton, also it is used in upholstery, gas mantle, fishing nets, and marine packings, etc. (Cengiz and Babalik, 2009;Marsyahyo et al, 2009;Sen and Jagannatha Reddy, 2011b). In addition to this attempt has been made for developing bio-based products by utilizing them in the field of automotive, furniture, construction, etc.…”