The UK is to develop an onshore supply of super bainite armour steel, it has been announced.
Invented and developed in the UK, the MoD says a deal signed with Tata Steel will give the UK its first sovereign steel armour supply and allow for exports of the ultra-hard material.
Super bainite, to be manufactured in
Port Talbot, Wales, is said to perform considerably better than regular steel in ballistics tests as a result of its perforations and the unique way in which it is cooled during manufacture.Invented and developed in the UK, the MoD says a deal signed with Tata Steel will give the UK its first sovereign steel armour supply and allow for exports of the ultra-hard material.
Super bainite, to be manufactured in
The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL) owns the patents relating to the chemical composition and production process of super bainite, and has signed a licensing agreement with Tata Steel to manufacture it in the UK and Europe and export it globally.
The deal was signed through Dstl subsidiary Ploughshare Innovations.
Dstl's Professor Peter Brown said: "The ballistic performance of perforated super bainite steel armour is at least twice that of conventional rolled homogenous steel armour. This is because the introduction of perforations creates a large number of edges which disrupt the path of incoming projectiles, significantly reducing their potency."
It is envisaged that super bainite will be used to create perforated armour plates for use on future armoured vehicles.
Minister for Defence, Equipment Support and Technology, Peter Luff, said: "This cutting-edge UK invention and the manufacturing agreement mean that the UK now has its own onshore supply of high-performance armour steel.
"Super bainite has both military and civilian applications providing Tata Steel with important export opportunities."
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