BODY ARMOR PROTOTYPE DESIGN USING ARAMID FIBRE (KEVLAR) COMPOSITE WITH ADDITIVES NANO TITANIUM DIOXIDE (TiO2)

Abstract

Body armor has a function to resist penetration and reduce impact power generated by projectiles and expand the contact area between the bullet and the body. Aramid fiber is a type of heat-resistant synthetic fiber that has the characteristics of high strength and stiffness but has an expensive price that requires special studies in determining the effective number of fiber layers. The problems and objectives raised in this study are how the effect of aramid fiber layer arrangement with TiO2 additives, and epoxy resin on ballistic body armor properties, the impact resistance of body armor specimens with the variable number of layers, material resistance to Charpy impact tests and bending tests, and how to design composite specimens that are effective and efficient and resistant to gunfire. The research method used is an experiment in making body armor specimens and then testing them to find out which layer is the most effective. From the specimens that have been made, there are 14, 16, 18, and 20 it is known that layers with 20 are the most effective layers. This can happen because, during ballistic impact testing, Charpy, Bending, Brinell, and Durometer this layer produces better values than others so it can be concluded that the number of layers affects the strength of the body armor.

Keywords: Body Armor, Charpy, Kevlar, aramid fiber, titanium dioxide