Hypervelocity impact tests on metal mesh materials

In order to protect space structures against space debris, it is indispensable to develop a new bumper material that reinforces the present bumper shield of the ISS. Metal mesh is one of potential materials from a viewpoint of both lightweight and flexibility. The purpose of this study is to investigate protection capability of metal mesh sheets quantitatively. Hypervelocity impact tests have been carried out using a two-stage light gas gun. The accelerated polycarbonate projectile reached 3.26 km/sec. The projectile was a cylindrical polycarbonate block with 10mm, in diameter and height and 1gram in mass. After the impact the projectile penetrated the stainless mesh sheet and produced a hole of 17.3 mm in diameter. Using two X-ray cameras and image analysis, we found that the stainless mesh sheet with 0.5 mm in wire diameter decreased the kinetic energy of the projectile by up to 38% drastically.