Date of Award
5-1-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.S. in Engineering Science
First Advisor
Damian L. Stoddard
Second Advisor
Wen Wu
Third Advisor
Farhad Farzbod
School
University of Mississippi
Relational Format
dissertation/thesis
Abstract
The necessity of ultra-lightweight functionally graded armor systems has increased to become a widely utilized protective system to combat hazardous conditions involving blast and impact mitigation. More materials have been presented as potential candidates to develop ultra-lightweight functionally graded armor systems for military and civilian applications. As readily available materials from around the world, various wood species require investigation as to the viability of designing protective systems. The hardwood species explored in this study were Alder, Basswood, Hard Maple, Mahogany, Padauk, Red Oak, and Walnut. The purpose of this study is to characterize the wood species under quasi-static and dynamic loading conditions to determine the viability of these wood species in an ultra-lightweight functionally graded armor system.
Quasi-static testing was conducted in a four-point bending configuration to determine the flexural stiffness and energy density of each wood type. The results displayed that Hard Maple was the stiffest wood species, 138 MPa, utilized in the study where Basswood had the lowest stiffness value of 70 MPa. Basswood, Hard Maple, and Walnut were observed to have the least amount of variance in the flexural stiffness values. As for the average energy density values under flexural conditions were 0.95 KJ/mm^3, 2.32 KJ/mm^3, and 0.89 KJ/mm^3 for Basswood, Hard Maple, and Walnut, respectively.
For the dynamic loading conditions, a Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar and Two Stage Light Gas Gun were used to characterize the dynamic behaviors of each wood species. The trend continued under blast loading and high strain-rate conditions where Basswood, Hard Maple and Walnut provided a low, medium, and high option for blast and impact mitigation.
For the results, it was concluded that Basswood, Hard Maple, and Walnut were the wood types selected for the ultra-lightweight functionally graded armor system because of the varied stiffness and flexural energy density values under flexural and high strain-rate conditions as well as blast loading characteristics allowed for a gradient of capabilities optimizing the layering sequences. The configurations that required the most energy to fracture were the HM-HM-HM and HM-B-HM configurations with 154.88 J and 55.44 J, respectively.
Recommended Citation
Miller, Nicholas, "Dynamic Characterization of Ultra-Lightweight Functionally Graded Wood Armor Systems for Blast Hazard Mitigation" (2026). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 8851.
https://egrove.olemiss.edu/etd/8851