UA Student’s Computer Modeling Helps Air Force Develop New Weapons Technology

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – A student in The University of Alabama’s Department of Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics is assisting the U. S. Air Force in selecting the best steel alloy to use in its next generation of air-launched weapons, through computer modeling of the effects of high-speed penetration on projectiles.

Robert Davis, a junior majoring in aerospace engineering and mechanics, along with Dr. Stanley Jones, Cudworth Professor of Aerospace Engineering and Mechanics, and other members of Jones’ research team, are conducting high-speed penetration tests to help develop smaller, faster, more versatile air-launched weapons. Their research is sponsored by the Air Force, and their findings will assist in determining the right kind of steel casings to use in developing new, high-speed weapons technology.

Davis, the son of Ted and Joetta Davis of Montgomery and a graduate of Sidney Lanier High, said he wants to someday work for NASA to develop advanced propulsion systems. “I am grateful for the opportunity to do meaningful research with exceptional faculty,” Davis said.

To study the effects of high-speed penetration on various steel alloys, the researchers fire projectiles from a gun tube at one end of a table towards a concrete target at the other. As the bullet-shaped objects travel, they pass through two laser beams, spaced two inches apart, which measure their impact velocity.

The firing apparatus produces projectile speeds of 1,200 to 4,000 feet per second, said Jones, and the results show the effects of high-velocity penetration on the projectiles. They then determine the “deformation profiles,” or eroded shapes, of each projectile, which is dependent upon their original shape and the materials they are made from.

“These are the most controlled penetration tests of any being done in a lab environment today,” Jones explained.

Davis, who is enrolled in UA’s Computer-Based Honors Program, develops the computer programs used in the research. A presentation on his programs for modeling the ballistic theories, titled “Analysis of High-Speed Friction,” won him first-place honors in verbal presentation at the first University of Alabama System Honors Research Day, held in April. A fellowship from the Computer-Based Honors Program provides funding that will assist Davis in continuing his research.

Davis was also recently named Outstanding Undergraduate Researcher by the aerospace engineering and mechanics department. He is a co-author with Jones on two research papers, one of which will be presented at a conference in Vancouver in August.

“Rob’s ability to design such strong computer programs allowed us to have a paper published in the Journal of Mechanical Engineering Science,” Jones said. “I have an excellent team of people working with me,” he added, “but Rob fills a unique niche. And considering how much he has already accomplished, it is definitely a role that needed filling.”