Estimation of ballistic performance of armor steels based on the split Hopkinson shear bar data

The paper presents a method of assessing of ballistic resistance of four armor steels based on the results of shear tests under dynamic load conditions. All shear tests were performed using a newly developed flat material specimen with two shear zones. High strain-rate experiments were performed using the spilt Hopkinson pressure bar technique. In addition, the V50 ballistic resistance tests for the armor steels were carried out. The maximum value of the shear strain energy density (SSED) was adopted as the evaluation criterion. The SSED parameter takes the highest average value for the armor steel with the highest ballistic resistance.