The Critical Role of Uniform Resin Distribution Within Armor‐Grade Composites in Enhancing Ballistic Performance

ABSTRACT This study investigated the influence of resin distribution uniformity on the ballistic performance of composite panels. Two resin processing methods were employed to manufacture composite panels, namely the resin film lamination (RFL) with resin mainly concentrating on the fabric surface, and fabrication with resin‐dipped yarns (FDR) with uniform resin distribution among filaments. Given the same areal density and resin content, the FDR panel exhibited a 46.2% higher yarn bonding force and around 20% improvement in ballistic energy absorption compared to the RFL panel. Finite element (FE) analysis using fiber‐bundle modeling simulated different resin distribution states within the two composite panels. The FE results indicated that the FDR panel with uniform resin distribution can sustain longer (28 μs) than the RFL panel (22 μs) under impact. The majority of filaments and yarns within the FDR panel, particularly those in the back layers, were engaged in sustaining high stress before complete perforation due to better resin bonding, thereby enhancing strain energy dissipation by 47.06% compared to the RFL panel. These findings suggest that uniform resin distribution within armor‐grade composites significantly improves ballistic energy absorption under impact, which can be achieved by optimizing composite processing techniques.