Ballistic limit of aircraft engine missile impact on ultra-high-performance steel-fiber-reinforced concrete panels

Abstract

The large commercial aircraft, especially its massive engines, would cause serious damage to the valuable infrastructures during accidental or deliberate aircraft collision. Ultra-high-performance steel-fiber-reinforced concrete possesses prominent mechanical characteristics, which has been widely used in the constructions of protective structures to resist intensive loadings. This article aims to investigate the ballistic performance of aircraft engine missile. First, a series of reduce-scaled engine model impact test on ultra-high-performance steel-fiber-reinforced concrete panels was performed, and then the panel damage modes were assessed and the perforation limit of engine missiles was obtained. Second, using the mesoscopic modeling approach of ultra-high-performance steel-fiber-reinforced concrete, the present and existing engine missile impact tests are numerically simulated with the finite element program LS-DYNA, and the panel damage, residual velocity, and deformation of engine missile are well reproduced. Finally, a modified empirical formula for predicting the ballistic limit is proposed and validated by the simulated results of aircraft engine missile impact on ultra-high-performance steel-fiber-reinforced concrete panels with various thicknesses. The derived conclusion could provide helpful reference for the design and impact resistance evaluation of protective structures.