HEAVY-METAL SELF-FORGING-FRAGMENT WARHEAD DEVELOPMENT

THE INCREASED EFFECTIVENESS OF MODERN ADVANCED ARMORS HAS CALLED FOR MORE PERFORMANCE FROM EXISTING CONVENTIONAL WARHEADS. ONE WAY TO ADDRESS THIS CHALLENGE IS THROUGH THE USE OF HIGH-DENSITY MATERIALS AS SELF-FORGING FRAGMENT (SFF) LINERS. THE BENEFIT OF SUCH MATERIALS IS INCREASED PENETRATION INTO THE TARGET. SEVERAL HIGH-DENSITY METALS INCLUDING TANTALUM (P = 16.6 G/CC), DEPLETED URANIUM (DU) (P = 19.1 G/CC), AND TUNGSTEN (P = 19.3 G/CC) HAVE BEEN TRIED IN THIS APPLICATION, BUT TUNGSTEN HAS A NUMBER OF ADVANTAGES. TUNGSTEN HAS A VERY HIGH DENSITY AND IS NON-RADIOLOGICAL AND NON-TOXIC. RECENT WORK HAS SHOWN THAT IT IS POSSIBLE TO PROCESS TUNGSTEN IN A COLD-FORGING OPERATION, WHICH IS QUITE ATTRACTIVE FROM A PRODUCTION STANDPOINT. PRELIMINARY APPLICATION TO SHAPE-CHARGE LINERS HAS ALSO SHOWN SATISFACTORY RESULTS. THEREFORE, WE PROPOSE TO DEMONSTRATE THE FEASIBILITY OF USING TUNGSTEN, DERIVED FROM A PRODUCTION-TYPE PROCESS, IN AN SFF LINER.