Composite armoured fighting vehicle could be first of many

APPLICATI#&$$

Composite armoured fighting vehicle could be first of many A DEMONSTRATION project aimed at establishing how well composites can replace metal for future armoured vehicles is currently underway at the UK Defense Research Agency. The programme, which started in late 1993, will produce Europe’s first glass fibre reinforced plastic (GRP) body for an armoured fighting vehicle (AFV). The body of the vehicle, known as the hull, is the structure onto which the wheels and engine are fitted, and represents the culmination of a pro-

for AFVs thanks to the combination of good material performance and reduced vehicle weight, says the DRA. By producing a fullscale demonstrator vehicle, the advantages that composite materials offer compared with traditional materials may be fully quantified. Advantages already outlined include reduced whole life costs, weight reduction and integral stealth protection, thus raising the mobility and survivability of the vehicle. The programme will

leadership of the DRA all three organizations have formed a partnership for the ACAVP programme. There are also two ACAVP associate member companies: Perkins Engines which will be supplying the vehicle’s power pack, and Ciba Composites which is supplying most of the composite materials for the hull. Identification of appropriate composite materials for utilisation in AFVs has been under evaluation at the DRA for many years and the ACAVP demonstrator forms the final stage of this work. , The demonstrator will be produced using resin transfer moulding (RTM) and will be produced in two halves. The hull structure will be one of the largest, and possibly thickest, RTM mouldings

I

A computer-generated

ever produced. It will have a total weight approaching 6 tonnes and a wall thickness up to 60 mm. The work is likely to be of interest not only to other AFV manufacturers, but also to security vehicle manufacturers and other industries where thick composite panels are already being exploited, such as in fire and blast protection. The composite hull is expected to be ready by January 1997. It will then be put into the vehicle and tested by Vickers at Leeds. Track trials will establish the vehicle’s fatigue and wear properties. The results of the tests will then feed into other programmes for future vehicles, and some of the expertise could be sold abroad, says the DRA. Mark French, DRA; tel: -t 44- 1344-6.33404; fax: + 44- 1344- 633556.

picture of the ACAW demonstrator

gramme known as the Advanced Composite Armoured Vehicle Platform (ACAVP). The need for lightweight armoured vehicles which can be rapidly deployed by air transportation, while still providing a high level of protection to their crews, is increasing. This has led to the current evaluation of composites

use the composite manufacturing expertise of the aerospace company Short Brothers and the AFV production knowledge of Vickers Defence Systems, together with the DRA’s research and computer-aided analysis and design capabilities. Under the

A graphic example of the type of computer-generated models of the hull that can be displayed, showing the expected distortion of the bull structure and associated stresses after being subjected to a specific load case.

Reinforced Plastics September 1995