Tanks can shoot kinetic energy “dart” ammo. Scientists say that Tungsten ones dull as they penetrate steel. But depleted uranium ones sharpen. How can this be true?

Question

Are some metals really that different from each other. Thank you.

In: 0

Answer 1

They don’t dull as much as they mushroom out. ELI5: the tip of the tungsten penetrator is getting squished between the armor and the body of the penetrator. DU has different material properties that cause it to shed/flake apart from the outside in rather than the whole tip squishing. Basically, it’s more brittle and it shatters in a way that doesn’t impact performance as much as a softer metal deforming. It seems counterintuitive that a shattering projectile can be a better one, but it’s useful to realize that this happens on a very short time scale: it only needs to hold together long enough to get through the armor.

There are other reasons DU is used. It’s better at starting fires than tungsten rounds, and DU a waste product while tungsten is a rare metal.