Bioinspired Innovative Optimization of FLEXible 3D-Printed Ceramic Composite Armor (BIOFLEX3D)

The BIOFLEX3D program seeks to explore new designs which can 1) enable kinetic personal protection equipment (PPE) solutions to protect against multiple threat types simultaneously and 2) incorporate flexibility and comfort into PPE solutions. The desired outcome of the BIOFLEX3D program is to develop a design which enables kinetic PPE systems to protect a warfighter’s vital organs and extremities from multiple threat types. At the core of BIOFLEX3D lies a desire to push kinetic PPE technology towards more universal and modular designs which withstand kinetic threats and can be applied to the warfighter, warfighter equipment, stationary defense systems, and beyond. Next-generation armor concepts for the BIOFLEX3D program are derived from bioinspired architectures of armadillo armor. Lead by Catalyst Science Solutions, LLC and in partnership with SiNAPTIC Technologies, and the Missouri University of Science and Technology, this initiative aims to develop a ceramic imitation of armadillo armor via additive manufacturing. Armadillo armor is comprised of plate structures which are interconnected with organic fibers that allow the plates to flex and bend while minimizing the exposed flesh under the armor. To imitate this structure, ceramic additive manufacturing will be used to print ceramic plates containing embedded flexible ceramic fibers on flexible ceramic fiber substrates. Once printed, these interconnected plates will be sintered and densified to produce a final interconnected plate design which mimics armadillo armor. The combination of the plate structure and the flexibility of the interconnected fibers will promote mobility and increase the total PPE coverage area on a warfighter. This is essential to protect highly mobile extremities or curved equipment used by the warfighter (shoulders, hearing equipment, helmets, etc.) and allows the flexible plates to be incorporated into other soft kinetic PPE material backings like ballistic fibers. By utilizing modular designs inspired by nature and proven ballistic PPE materials which can be additively manufactured (aluminum oxide), the program team strives to uncover new processing-property relationships needed to enable the manufacturing on and around ceramic fiber textile products to produce an interconnected ceramic plate armor. These relationships will guide the development of the overall flexible hard kinetic PPE system and help transition current large and rigid ceramic PPE designs to future iterations which are more modular and enable increased protection of the warfighter. As the BIOFLEX3D program develops, materials and designs can be varied to produce PPE for more than just kinetic threats. Examples include, but are not limited to, more breathable or insulating designs for extreme hot or cold environments and integration of new plate materials which enable operations in extreme radiation environments like z-shielding materials.