Defence technology:Special issue on“composite materials in defence technology”

In recent years,composite materials have been used in many industries such as in automotive,aerospace,telecommunication,marine,furniture,construction and defence.Body amour and tank spall liners are examples of the use of composites in defence industry.Composites have many different attributes that are unique over conventional materials like metals,polymers and ceramics.Those attributes include light weight,high specific stiffness and strength properties,corrosion resistance,aesthetically pleasing and ease of fabrication.Advanced composites such as aramid and carbon fibre polymer composites,metal matrix composites,ceramic matrix composites,and nanocomposites are among material contenders in defence technology applications requiring excellent structural integrity.Composites are also used in some non-structural applications in selected components utilising the low cost advantage of glass fibre and natural fibre composites.In composites,materials characterization and performance evaluation are essential to ensure materials and products can perform successfully during services.All the above issues are addressed in this special issue.It is hoped the readers will appreciate and be benefitted from these publications.