U.S. Air Force Academy cadets use epoxy resin to make new bulletproof armor

Through the new bullet-proof armor made from sticky bodies during classroom exercises, students of the US Air Force Academy proved that the role of the school curriculum is not only to renovate the old ground
.
In 2014, first-year Hayley Weir's task of combining epoxy resin, aramid fiber and carbon fiber into a bulletproof material inspired her to develop this task into a new type of flexible bullet
.

Composite armor is not new, and Weir’s mission is only a standard specification, but she is not satisfied with the result.
Although the composite may stop a bullet, the material itself is too hard and fragile
.
On the advice of the college's chemistry consultant, she replaced the epoxy resin with a shear-thickened liquid
.

This is not a new substance either
.
The shear thickening liquid is made of nanoparticles suspended in a polymer, which looks like plastic glue and is as flexible as a thawed cryogel component under normal conditions
.
However, if they receive enough impact, their properties will fundamentally change, and they will become very hard and very sticky
.

  To give a common example, take the plasticine ball that is often played as an example
.
Touch it with your fingers.
It is soft and loose.
If you stand it alone, it will even flow down under its own weight
.
But if you hit it with a hammer or hammer, it will even shatter like glass
.
This shear thickening liquid has been used in fluid motorcycle leather and military personnel armor, but Weir has accidentally discovered something new
.

  Weir collaborated with Ryan Burke, a professor of military and strategic studies, and had the idea of ​​studying an aramid composite viscous armor
.
However, when the two looked up the current research, they found that no one had previously studied something similar to Weir's combination
.

  In 2016, Weir and Burke conducted experiments with the new armor.
They tried to find the most effective blend of the three materials
.
They are also trying to figure out how layering will provide them with the best deterrence
.
By December, they were ready to test
.

  They found that what they took out was not just a bullet plug, but a more effective, larger and faster circle
.
Most of the layer of a 9mm circular perforation is only blocked by the aramid fiber backing.
However, 40 Smith & Wesson will only be blocked when the third Kevlar aramid fiber layer is reached, and the high speed .
44Magnum The big disc did not surpass the first
.

Burke said: “The greater the force, the better the hardening or thickening effect
.

  Weir, who graduated from the college, will continue to conduct research at Clemson University in South Carolina because she and Burke have been working to perfect the technology
.
They It is believed that the technology will have a wide range of applications, including personal and vehicle armor, bulletproof materials and shrapnel, as well as rapid deployment of roadblocks, and protection of civilians in large-scale shooting incidents will play a great role
.