www.popsci.com Wrote:Liquid armor has been shown to stop bullets more effectively than plain Kevlar, according to British firm BAE Systems. The material could be used to make thinner, lighter armor for military personnel and police officers, the BBC reports.
Materials scientists combined a shear-thickening liquid with traditional Kevlar to make a bulletproof material that absorbs the force of a bullet strike by becoming thicker and stickier.
Its molecules lock together more tightly when it is struck, the scientists explained -- they described it as "bulletproof custard," the BBC reports.
Shear-thickening liquids are composed of hard nanoparticles suspended in a liquid, which turns rigid after being struck with a bullet or shrapnel. BAE says their tests provide the first clear evidence that it can actually protect people.
In the tests, BAE scientists used a gas gun to fire ball-bearing bullets at nearly 1,000 feet per second at two test materials -- 31 layers of regular Kevlar and 10 layers of Kevlar combined with the shear-thickening liquid.
The shear-thickening liquid stopped the bullets more quickly and prevented them from penetrating as deeply, the BBC says. British media got a preview of the materials at a BAE facility in Bristol, England.
The U.S. Army Research Laboratory has studied using liquid armor to replace traditional Kevlar armor, which is heavy and bulky.
Hopefully this would drive down weight, and allow sleeves and trousers made out of the stuff. Vital organs are all well and good, but bomb squads and grunts want their limbs to have a chance too.
I once saw a guy run across a swimming pool filled with custard (on TV). He went all the way across and then back. At the other side, he stopped a short distance from the side and instantly began sinking, the moment his feet stopped striking the custard and instead just rested the weight.
I reckon you could be onto something with the outer skin also being edible. Apple crumble flavor suit with a custard filling. Stops bullets and you get to eat it later. A 'true' survival suit.
Actually, shear-thickening fluids have been around for quite a while and not "just in Britain". The US (and other countries too, I believe) have been researching them for quite a while now, it's even part of their Future Force Warrior program.
Not too sure about it's applicability in the field of EOD, though. Liquid armor works by dispersing the force of a single, fast blow over a wide area; when you're hit by an explosion, though, the blow isn't concentrated but hits your whole body.
Get a packet of cornflour, mix some of it with water in a bowl, then poke it hard, keep squeezing it and see what it does. They were called non-newtonian fluids for a long time. Go and play catch with a friend with some of it. It's kinda odd seeing someone throw something solid, watching it turn liquid in the air, then go solid again when you catch it. That's always fun.