New armor tech. Liquid body armor

[Interceptor]

http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,usa3_042104.00.html

Pretty sweet. Hope we see this stuff real soon.

[depdog]

Sounds like a great idea. Though I'm sure The cost will be huge.

[letshearit4blue]

hmmm... interesting...
But if you get shot will it leak? Then what would happen if you get shot after that?
Maybe I didn't read the article right.

[toby101]

hmmm... interesting...
But if you get shot will it leak? Then what would happen if you get shot after that?
Maybe I didn't read the article right.

From what I understand is it will just displace like when you throw something into the water. But that is how I interpreted it.

[letshearit4blue]

From what I understand is it will just displace like when you throw something into the water. But that is how I interpreted it.

Yeah, but wouldn't you have a gaping hole in your vest???

[toby101]

Yeah, but wouldn't you have a gaping hole in your vest???

I think after couple of layers "displace" then the bullet will be stopped and bounce off.

[letshearit4blue]

I think after couple of layers "displace" then the bullet will be stopped and bounce off.

Hmmmm I don't quite understand but I'll take your word for it.

[nasty_b]

I think that the liquid gets hard once the bullet hits....

"During normal handling, the STF is very deformable and flows like a liquid. However, once a bullet or frag hits the vest, it transitions to a rigid material, which prevents the projectile from penetrating the Soldier's body,"

[Dons]

"STF is soaked into all layers of the Kevlar vest"

The vest is not actually liquid. The way I am thinking, it is a Kevlar vest with liquid so it is more flexible.

As for the liquid hardning, think of silly putty, if you apply a soft force, it will flatten, if you hit it with a hammer, it will shatter.

Although, it was kind of confusing, so I very well may be wrong.

[medic_9]

Did you every make that stuff as a kid? I think it's half baking soda half water. If you just left it in your hand it was runny and you could almost pour it. But if you squeezed your hand closed on the stuff it would turn hard. I think it's the same type of concept.

[letshearit4blue]

But would it turn back to liquid after hardening? and if the hardened layer was shot again would it shatter? and how large an area would be hardened?
hmmm. Would make an interesting report for my Chem class...

[Tim Dees]

I wrote about STF before I came to Officer.com. The liquid is a polymer form of ethylene glycol - chemically similar to engine coolant. The polymer form makes it thick, maybe the consistency of a McDonald's shake. There are tiny spheres of glass suspended in the glycol. If you stir the solution slowly, it acts like a thick liquid. But if you speed up the stirring, the glass spheres can't get out of each others' way fast enough, and the solution seizes up. After a second, the tension relaxes and everything returns to normal. A bullet traveling at high velocity has to work against the friction of the glass spheres, thus the ballistic properties.

If the STF-loaded vest is punctured, the STF might leak out, but the liquid is so thick that most of it would remain soaked into the Kevlar. You'd still have to replace the vest, though.

[letshearit4blue]

Oh my god, Tim, I actually understood that!
Wow... suddenly it's all clear lol

[RobSlig]

Sounds like a good idea.

It takes only 10 inches of water to stop a .50 cal round from a high power rifle. (I saw this on Myth Busters the other night and was very surprised)

I would think that some kind of gel material or other like invention might be able to work on that principle.

[letshearit4blue]

It takes only 10 inches of water to stop a .50 cal round from a high power rifle.

If I'm being shot at I'll remember to dive into water below the one-foot mark