Study of Grooved Warhead Structure On Performance

Int. Jnl.
of Multiphysics Volume 12 · Number 1 · 2018 41
Study of Grooved Warhead Structure on

Performance of Warhead Fragment
Distribution Pattern
Q Jing*, T Zhou
Xi’an Modern Chemistry Research Institute, Xi’an, China
ABSTRACT
Fragment distribution pattern is a major factor for fragmentation warhead of
medium diameter gun weapon, two different grooved warhead structures
on the outer surface of warhead are proposed in this paper to improve
warhead fragment distribution pattern. Experiments are performed to
validate effectiveness of said efforts, and results show diamond-grooved
warhead structure produces more fragment distribution density around
warhead axis than parallel-grooved warhead structure, while keeping
identical fragment projecting angle and dispersion angle. Finally, optimum
depth on the surface of diamond-groove warhead structure is also obtained
through experiments, showing impressive capability to withstand barrel
gunpowder pressure more than 300 hundred million pascal per square
meter.
1. INTRODUCTION
Medium diameter gun receives widespread attentions for advantages of fast deployment
speed, launching interval, and efficient cost, providing terminal defense for the high-valued
weapon platforms, e.g. 76mm diameter gun of Oto Melara Company in Italy was
extensively equipped in the Western navies such as the United States, Britain, and France
etc. Unfortunately fragments generated on the detonation of medium diameter warhead have
undesirable uneven shrapnel size, shape, mass, and distribution pattern, leading to
undesirable destruction toward intended target. For this reason, defense contractors across
the world increasingly design preformed warhead structure to improve fragment size, shape,
mass, and distribution pattern, enhancing lethality of medium diameter warhead. Oto
Melara in Italy, for instance, adopts a preformed warhead with hundreds of tungsten alloy
spheres around outer surface of warhead explosive charge, evidently increase lethality of
76mm diameter warhead.
2. GROOVE STRUCTURE DESIGN

Amongst various preformed methods, full preformed fragmentation and partial preformed
fragmentation are extensively used in the warhead design to enhance destruction capacity.
Full preformed fragmentation mainly applied in such mild launching environment as
general launchers for the reason of lower launching overload, in such circumstance warhead
should have a thinner wall thickness to save space to arrange hundreds or thousands of full
___________________________________
*Corresponding Author: [email protected]
42 Study of Grooved Warhead Structure on Performance of Warhead Fragment
preformed metal fragments around explosive charge, then even fragment size, even
fragment shape, even fragment mass, and more fragment distribution density are obtained,
while relatively lower fragment projecting velocity is also obtained.
Partial preformed fragmentation, for the reason of thick warhead structure wall, could
withstand such typical harsh launching environment as gun barrel, and relatively even
fragment size, fragment shape, fragment mass, and fragment distribution density are also
obtained.
Grooved warhead structure, a typical partial preformed fragmentation, has a series of deep
grooves on the surface of warhead, which could generate a series of stress concentration
points, these concentration points break up upon detonation of warhead explosive charge, then
numerous even-sized fragments are obtained, and projecting toward target at supersonic
velocity, penetrating intended target[1].
2.1 Experiment Sample

Two different kind of experiment samples were machined on outer surface of warhead
structure, sample #1 is grooved in parallel arrangement with 90 degrees on the outer surface,
sample #2 is grooved in diamond arrangement with 45 degrees, in this case, equivalent
thickness of grooved warhead structures of sample #1 and sample #2 is thinner than
ungrooved section of warhead structure, leading to reduction of tensile stress and
compressive stress in the grooved section, which produces stress concentration points in the
grooved section of warhead structure. Once upon detonation of warhead explosive charge,
detonation shock wave quickly sweeps across inner surface of warhead structure, bring
about a series of breakup lines along stress concentration points, then warhead structure
simultaneously fractures along the breakup lines, generating hundreds or thousands of metal
fragments, which show a desirable performance of even shape, even size, and even mass,
punching numerous even-sized circular holes on the intended target.
90
°
Figure 1: Parallel-grooved Warhead Structure

Int. Jnl. of Multiphysics Volume 12 · Number 1 · 2018 43
Figure 2: Diamond-grooved Warhead Structure
Figure 3: Cross-sectional View of Breakup Lines and Projecting Fragments

2.2 Experimental results and analysis

The specifications of experimental samples are
(1) Single point center detonation in on end of warhead,

(1) HMX-based explosive charge,
(2) Warhead structure of low carbon steel,
(3) Warhead structure diameter of 76mm,
(4) Intended target of type Q235A steel.
The lethality of above experimental samples are verified in the static ground explosion
experiments, results are listed in Table 1. Sample #1 of parallel-grooved warhead structure
produces a combination of bar-shaped fragments pattern and square-shaped fragments, with
fragment distribution density of 11.9 fragments per square meter. While sample #2 of
diamond-grooved structure produces almost identical square-shaped fragments, with a
distribution density of 38 fragments per square meter toward intended target of type Q235A
steel, obviously sample #2 of diamond-grooved warhead structure show more uniform
fragment distribution pattern than sample #1 of parallel-grooved warhead structure, meantime,
sample #2 of diamond-grooved warhead structure exhibit more fragment distribution density.
Table 1: Experimental Results of Grooved Structure Warhead

sample Warhead structure Fragment shape Distribution density
#1 Parallel grooved structure Bar-shaped square-shaped 11.9
#2 Diamond grooved structure square-shaped 38.0
3. GROOVE DEPTH OPTIMIZATION

For grooved warhead structure with different groove depth, shallow groove depth could
relatively lessen warhead structure stress, providing more robust constraints confining
explosive gaseous products before warhead structure fracturing, then a relatively longer
loaded time of high pressure expansion gaseous products inside warhead structure results
in higher projecting velocity of fragments. Deeper groove depth could relatively weaken
warhead structure, providing lesser constraints to the explosive gaseous products, then a
relatively shorter loaded time of explosive pressure on grooved structure results in relatively
lower projecting velocity, meantime an acceptable even fragment size, mass, and
distribution pattern are also obtained.
3.1 Optimal groove depth

In this paper, sample #3 and sample #4 are prepared on the basis of sample #2 with different
diamond-grooved depth of 1/2 and 2/3 of warhead wall thickness respectively, static ground
explosion experiment is performed to validate lethality performance, experimental results
are listed in table 2. Experimental results show that groove depth in the surface of warhead
structure significantly influence fragment projecting velocity and distribution density while
keeping an identical fragment projecting angle of 4 degrees and dispersion angle of 8
degrees. Sample #4 could produce 5.7% more fragments than sample #3 for the reason of
excellent fragment-generating capacity due to deeper groove depth, whereas achieving
5.6% relatively lower than sample #3 in fragment projecting velocity for the reason of soft
constraint due to thicker warhead structure of sample #4.
Table 2: Influence of grooved depth on fragment projecting velocity and

distribution properties
Fragment Fragment Fragment Fragment
Sample Grooved
projecting distribution density dispersion projecting
number depth
velocity (m/s) (per square meter) angle (degree) angle (degree)
1/2 of
warhead
#3 1665 47.7 8 4
wall
thickness
2/3 of
warhead
#4 1577 50.4 8 4
wall
thickness
3.2 Stress assessment of warhead structure

Besides general launching overload, warhead used in the medium-sized gun must resist gun
barrel gunpowder pressure of hundreds of million pascal per square meter, then stress of
warhead structure should be considered and assessed in the course of grooved depth
optimization. So sample #5 is prepared and subject to stress assessment in artificial gun
barrel simulator.
Figure 4: Gun Barrel Simulator

In the stress assessment, grooved warhead structure was compressed by fast burning of
standard gunpowder, which is equivalent to gun barrel launching overload. Stress assessment
result shows that a diamond-grooved 1/2 depth of warhead structure wall thickness could resist
simulated barrel gunpowder pressure of 350 million pascal per square meter, while keeping
explosive charge intact, meeting requirements of harsh launching overpressure in gun barrel.
Pmax=351MPa
350
300
250
P /MPa
200
150
100
50
0.00 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04

t /s
Figure 5: Pressure Curve of Artificial Gun Barrel Simulator during
Launching Stage
4. CONCLUSIONS
(1) Machining a series of grooved depth on the surface of medium diameter gun could
produce a series of stress concentration points, providing desirable breakup lines to form
fragments upon detonation of explosive charge;
(2) Comparing to parallel grooves on the surface of warhead of medium diameter gun,
diamond grooves could evidently produce fragments characterized of evenly size and shape,
enhance lethality of warhead.
(3) Diamond grooved depth of more than 1/2 warhead structure wall thickness could
produce more fragments around warhead axis toward intended target.
(4) Considering fragment distribution density, projecting velocity, and launching
overpressure in the gun barrel, machining a series of 1/2 grooved depth of warhead structure
could enhance lethality of medium diameter warhead, which is desirable in the engineering
development of medium diameter gun warhead.
REFERENCES：
[1] ZHAO Guozhi etc. Engneering Design of Conventional Warhead. Publishing house of
Nanjing University of Science and Technology. 2000.
[2] WANG Fengying etc. Lethality Theories and Technologies. Beijing Institute of
Technology Press. 2009.
[3] Explosion Effect, No.8th department of Beijing Institute of Technology. National
Defense Industries Press .1979.
48

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Int. Jnl.

of Multiphysics Volume 12 · Number 1 · 2018 41

Study of Grooved Warhead Structure on

2. GROOVE STRUCTURE DESIGN

2.1 Experiment Sample

Figure 1: Parallel-grooved Warhead Structure

Figure 2: Diamond-grooved Warhead Structure

Figure 3: Cross-sectional View of Breakup Lines and Projecting Fragments

2.2 Experimental results and analysis

(1) Single point center detonation in on end of warhead,

Table 1: Experimental Results of Grooved Structure Warhead

3. GROOVE DEPTH OPTIMIZATION

3.1 Optimal groove depth

Table 2: Influence of grooved depth on fragment projecting velocity and

3.2 Stress assessment of warhead structure

Figure 4: Gun Barrel Simulator

0.00 0.01 0.02 0.03 0.04

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