Family of Light Weight Cases for 5.56mm Ammunition

During the Phase I effort, Corvid Technologies will thoroughly evaluate the present state of the art of candidate materials and designs of a lighter and more cost effective 5.56mm ammunition case for the expressed purpose of compiling data in a clear, easily digested format that will be subsequently used to select a candidate or candidates for prototyping. The present state of the art consists of traditional metal alloys, polymers, and composites; a suite of simulations will be run that evaluate the characteristics of these materials as well variations in case thickness. These simulations will include a baseline brass case so as to validate the simulated SAAMI results to which all subsequent cylinder pressures and velocities will be compared. Through the use of high performance computing, Corvid Technologies will directly model the propellant, ammunition case, bullet, and chamber with Velodyne, a parallel, in-house, first principle physics, hydro-structural code. This will allow for approximately nanosecond insight into the firing process. For each material and case thickness option, extreme temperatures will also be evaluated to determine the effect of embrittlement or ductility at extreme temperatures.