on the wikipedia I found three diferent type of AP technology:
shot and shell penetrator
shaped charge penetrator (HEAT warhead in RPG for example)
kinetic energy penetrator (armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot used in main battle tanks).
Kinetic energy AP uses narrow and long darts made of high density & strength material fired from a cannon of big diameter using a sabot.
Material used can be depleted uranium, that due to friction heats up and burtsts after inpact destroying everything inside the armour.
shape charge technick uses high explosive that is fired by a detonator that is ignited by a pressure switch (normaly piezzo element) when a projectile hit the target. This high explosive super heats up the metal infront of it (normaly copper) to for plasma gas that is directed to a narrow point using special funnel at the top of the warhead. This super heated gas travels at the speed of up to 25M and cuts through the armour like a welding machine.
but I really don't understand how shot and shell penetrator works. In the scheme found on wikipedia it is made of light weight balistic cap, steel alloy piercing shell with high exlosives underneath it and a fuse at the end that fires the explosive at just the right time.
I can understand 2nd Newton's law of action and reaction, but I think that firing up the explosives in this warhead won't produce much trust, I think it will react much like a rocket motor. As far as I understand this I can compere this with firing up a bullet out of the gun barrel which will have two openings. I believe that in a experiment like this, both bullet and a cartridge case will accelerate in an opposite direction, where both will theoreticaly recieve only a half of released energy.
shot and shell penetrator
shaped charge penetrator (HEAT warhead in RPG for example)
kinetic energy penetrator (armour-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot used in main battle tanks).
Kinetic energy AP uses narrow and long darts made of high density & strength material fired from a cannon of big diameter using a sabot.
Material used can be depleted uranium, that due to friction heats up and burtsts after inpact destroying everything inside the armour.
shape charge technick uses high explosive that is fired by a detonator that is ignited by a pressure switch (normaly piezzo element) when a projectile hit the target. This high explosive super heats up the metal infront of it (normaly copper) to for plasma gas that is directed to a narrow point using special funnel at the top of the warhead. This super heated gas travels at the speed of up to 25M and cuts through the armour like a welding machine.
but I really don't understand how shot and shell penetrator works. In the scheme found on wikipedia it is made of light weight balistic cap, steel alloy piercing shell with high exlosives underneath it and a fuse at the end that fires the explosive at just the right time.
I can understand 2nd Newton's law of action and reaction, but I think that firing up the explosives in this warhead won't produce much trust, I think it will react much like a rocket motor. As far as I understand this I can compere this with firing up a bullet out of the gun barrel which will have two openings. I believe that in a experiment like this, both bullet and a cartridge case will accelerate in an opposite direction, where both will theoreticaly recieve only a half of released energy.