High-Strength, Lightweight Material for a Bridge Applications (MSC P4007)

The objective of this proposal is to review and develop a new material system for military bridge application. This material system is optimized to meet all of the Army"s desired requirements including specific stiffness, specific strength, durability, fatigue, wear, and environmental degradation. The material system builds upon our learned experience of developing advanced composite infantry, assault, and support military bridging technology demonstrators for DARPA, the U.S. Army, and ONR, where it was shown that a 15-20% weight saving could be realized along with improved performance (higher military load classification (MLC) rating). The proposed material system is a composite based system composed of high-strength fibers, a toughened epoxy resin, lightweight thinner core, and a more durable wear surface. With all of these improvements, this new material system will result in a next generation of military bridging that is significantly (25-30%) lighter than existing metallic military bridging. Furthermore, this new material system can be adapted to the development of a light-weight man-portable (backpack carry) combination bridging for infantry and light-weight (low MLC) vehicles.