Strain concentration caused by the closed end contributes to cartridge case failure at the bottom

Ruptures at the bottom of cartridges are a common cause of failure of ammunitions,which directly threatens the safety of weapons and shooters.Based on plastic tube theory,this study analyses the radial and axial deformation of a cartridge,considering the radial constraint of the closed end at the bottom of the cartridge.Owing to the influence of the closed end,the bottom of a cartridge does not establish complete contact with the chamber.Owing to strain concentration in the non-contact area,this area is more amenable to the occurrence of cartridge rupture.This theory predicts the location of the fracture more accurately than the traditional theory.The maximum axial deformation of a cartridge comprises bending and friction deformation.The maximum strain at the bottom of the cartridge increased by 135%owing to the introduction of bending strain caused by the closed end.The strain distribution of a cartridge was measured using digital image correlation technology,and the measured result was consistent with the predicted results of the bending deformation theory and rupture case.The effects of wall thickness,radial clearance,friction coefficient,and axial clearance on the axial deformation of the cylinder were studied.Increasing the wall thickness and reducing radial clearance were found to reduce bending deformation;furthermore,lubrication and reduction in axial clearance reduce frictional deformation,which in turn reduce cartridge rupture.

Design and Modeling on Stranded Wires Helical Springs

A stranded wires helical spring is formed of a multilayer and coaxial strand of several wires twisted together with the same direction of spiral. Compared with the conventional single wire spring, the stranded wires helical spring has the notable predominance in strength, damping and vibration reduction, which is usually used in aircraft engines, automatic weapons, etc. However, due to its complicated structure, the precise computation of its strength and rigidity need be a correct mathematical model, which then will be imported to finite element analysis software for solutions. Equations on solving geometric parameters, such as external diameters of strands and screw pitches of wires, are put forward in the paper. It also proposes a novel methodology on solving geometric parameters and establishing entity models of the stranded wires helical spring, which provides foundation of computing mechanical parameters by FEA. Then mathematical models on the centre line of the strand and the surface curve of each wire, after closing two ends in a spring, are proposed. Finally, geometric parameters are solved in a case study, and a 3D entity model of a spring with 3 layers and 16 wires is established, which has validated the accuracy of the proposed methodology and the 3D entity mathematical model. The method provides a new way to design stranded wire helical spring.