Ballistic characteristics of ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene/ceramic sandwich structures: Analytical model and numerical simulation

To evaluate the protective performance of lightweight hybrid armors, this work investigates the ballistic characteristics of ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene/ceramic/ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene sandwich structures analytically and numerically. A three-stage analytical model of the ballistic characteristics of ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene/ceramic/ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene sandwich structures is developed, specifically incorporating a dynamic residual plug mass unloading effect to precisely characterize the evolving projectile–target momentum exchange. The finite element framework is validated against published ballistic experiments for both ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene laminates and silicon carbide-based targets, including residual velocity, perforation/arrest behavior, and representative failure characteristics. In addition, numerical calculations for the ballistic characteristics of ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene/ceramic/ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene sandwich structures are conducted. The analytical results are in good agreement with the numerical results. The investigation reveals a distinct velocity-dependent transition in energy dissipation mechanisms: in the moderate-velocity regime (900–1400 m/s), the ceramic conoid facilitates effective load diffusion, activating high-efficiency global membrane stretching in the ultra-high-molecular weight polyethylene back plate (accounting for approximately 43–48% of the component-level target internal energy in the finite element analysis). Conversely, as the impact velocity increases, the failure mode shifts toward localized shear-dominated perforation driven by intensive ceramic comminution. Parametric analyses under constant areal density constraints identify a best-performing intermediate H c / H b ratio among the investigated configurations, balancing projectile attenuation with rear-plate membrane energy absorption. Furthermore, the dimensionless strength factor K is identified as a critical determinant, where high-strength ceramics exponentially suppress dynamic impact forces, facilitating a transition to high-energy-absorbing global deformation modes. This research elucidates the hierarchical failure evolution of sandwich architectures and provides a quantitative theoretical framework for the mass-efficient design of advanced composite armors.