Improvements to the BMDS Hit-to-Kill Lethality Predictive Toolset

The U.S. Army, MDA, and other DoD agencies can greatly benefit from enhancements to the current BMDS Hit-To-Kill Lethality Predictive Toolset. One area where improvements could be made is the simulation of the damage caused by reactive material projectiles, where the explosive is capable of acting as both structure and explosive allowing the projectile to achieve a high explosive incendiary effect, without the added complexity and mass of fuses. To incorporate reactive materials into new interceptor concepts with enhanced lethality, the ability to rapidly determine the damaged imparted to the target must be developed. Currently fast running penetration algorithms can’t treat events where damage done by the threat is highly dependent on the response of the target. The purpose of the work described in this proposal is to create fast-running penetration equations and damage prediction algorithms for reactive materials, based on data from test validated high fidelity simulations, which can be incorporated into existing tools to provide the ability to perform rapid engineering level trade studies using reactive munitions. Fast-running reactive material penetration equations and damage prediction algorithms will reduce the need for extensive test programs and reduce the costs associated with developing new munitions and systems.