Ceramic Composite Lined Metal Composite Gun Barrels for Small Arms

"Small arms steel barrels suffer from high weight, wear anderosion and unacceptable thermal exchange at high fire rates.Ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) possess inherent properties thatcould ameliorate wear/erosion and reduced heat transfer at highfire rates. The investigation of CMC?s in steel barrels has notmet with expected results due to fabrication and liningmethodology difficulties. The Phase I program demonstrated CMC?sliners could be produced and functionally graded into a metalmatrix composite (MMC) that had the properties of steel but atless than one-half the weight. This demonstrated fabricationmethodology will be utilized in Phase II to produce several CMClined MMC barrels with a weight savings of over 50% compared tosteel for live fire testing to define which CMC materialscombination and fabrication processing produces the best livefire test results. Selected materials combinations will befurther developed and optimized with respect to live firetesting. Optimized barrels will be produced to demonstratereproducibility, provide a basis for translation intoproduction/field deployment and a basis to define productioncost. CMC/MM barrels are expected to generate a new paradigm insmall arms rapid fire barrels.BENEFITS: Ceramic matrix composites (CMC?s) functionally graded into metal matrix composites (MMC?s) have applications as gun barrels for all military services and NATO as well as sportsman?s, engine components, chemi