DE Technologies, Inc.

Under a current Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program sponsored by the Air Force Armament Laboratory, DE Technologies is developing means for maintaining the trajectory stability of bombs in penetrating large distances through sand and soil.

In penetration of such soft media as sand and soils, cavitation occurs, whereby the penetration crater grows so wide that its walls become separated from the sides of the penetrator and no longer support it to maintain a straight trajectory. This shifts the drag force on the penetrator ahead of its center of mass, which makes any angle of attack tend to increase, thereby causing the penetrator to turn and swerve from a straight path.

So far, our research has demonstrated that a penetrator's tendency to turn is affected not only by its initial angle of attack, but also by its initial rate of rotation. It is also strongly affected by the shape of the penetrator.

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Last modified: 02/09/10