Liquid+Armour+Article

Liquid Armour A lot of research has been done on nanotechnology recently to try and figure out how particles act when they are very small. Particles have different properties when they are this size; research is still being done to explain why. Due to the development of nanotechnology, many new and exciting things have been invented, one of the newest being liquid armour. The name is a bit deceiving, the idea of liquid armour is Kevlar, which is a material that is currently used as body armour, soaked in shear-thickening fluid or MR fluid. These liquids are used to reinforce the Kevlar because they harden when a force is applied. The aim of making the liquid material is to make effective body armour out of something that is lighter and more mobile. This makes it easier for the people wearing them to do their job. In a job like law enforcement the job is hard enough already without having a vest on that is weighing you down and reduces movement. The nanoparticles inside the shear-thickening fluid are made of silica suspended in polyethylene glycol. When the liquid armour is being worn it is in a state of equilibrium, meaning the fabric is mobile and soft, but when the armour is struck the silica particles clump together and the armour becomes hard. This is how it stops bullets and knives. The silica particles clump together in milliseconds, because of the impact and afterwards, goes back to its loose state, almost immediately, making it perfect for mobility. The nanoparticles in MR fluid are made up of iron and a liquid. There isn’t as much information on MR fluid as there is on shear-thickening fluid because research is still being conducted on how MR fluid works. The iron and the liquid have liquid like qualities until a magnet is moved towards the iron and the iron goes hard. When the magnet moves the area that is stiff also changes, this is because the iron lines up with the magnetic field and it acts like a solid. Once the magnet is removed, the iron and the liquid go back to the original state when it acts like a liquid. Nanotechnology has changed a lot of things in the current world. Although liquid body armour is still being looked into and hasn’t been used yet, it is likely that soldiers and police officers will be wearing body armour made with liquid very soon.