Qitin®

Qitin® Armor Ceramics: High-Performance Ceramics for Ballistic Protection

Optimized material properties and significant weight reduction for body armor, aircraft protection, and vehicle armor systems

Qitin® Armor Ceramics

Maximum Protection with Precision-Engineered Ceramics

Qitin® Armor Ceramics provides an advanced material solution for the challenges of modern defense systems. Schunk materials based on reaction-bonded silicon carbide (SiC) and reaction-bonded boron carbide (B4C) use their extreme hardness to fracture the hardened core of a projectile, while the remaining kinetic energy is transferred to the composite backing material.

Advanced manufacturing processes ensure that every component has a homogeneous microstructure and tight dimensional tolerances. This results in consistent, reproducible quality across series production and provides the reliability customers need to certify their complete armor systems to international standards such as STANAG 4569 and NIJ.

Built on extensive materials research, Qitin® serves as a key component in composite armor systems, providing critical protection against armor-piercing (AP) ammunition.

Weight Reduction

Qitin® ceramics are up to 30% lighter than conventional aluminum oxide. The resulting weight savings improve mobility and mission endurance while also increasing vehicle range.

Resilient Supply Chain – Made in Europe

To ensure independence from non-European sources, Schunk will process SiC and B4C raw materials entirely in Europe. The RECOSiC project also promotes a sustainable circular economy and reduces the CO₂ footprint by more than 80%.

Multi-Hit Performance

Schunk ceramics offer high resistance to multiple ballistic impacts. Integrated into the customer's complete armor system, they provide reliable performance even under demanding multi-hit conditions.

Digital Quality Assurance

Every armor plate undergoes 100% density verification, high-resolution X-ray inspection, and 3D dimensional measurement. Each component has a unique QR code linked to its digital twin, including all inspection and measurement records. This data remains available to customers for ten years, ensuring full traceability.

Performance Levels & Nomenclature

The choice of material follows a clearly defined system of performance levels and a four-digit product code, providing transparency into material quality and manufacturing process.

Qitin® Classic (3000 Series): A reliable, cost-effective solution for high-volume production programs.
Qitin® Performance (5000 Series): An optimized balance of weight, ballistic performance, and system integration.
Qitin® Ultimate (7000 Series): The technological pinnacle for maximum protection with minimum weight.

Body Armor

Ceramic components (Ceramic Strike Face) for hard armor inserts. Qitin® materials support the highest protection levels while enabling ergonomic geometries designed to maximize freedom of movement in the field.

Aircraft Protection

Weight-optimized ceramic components for ballistic protection systems in rotary- and fixed-wing aircraft. Designed to provide maximum crew protection while minimizing the impact on payload capacity.

Vehicle Armor

Optimized ceramic components for ground vehicles. Schunk supplies custom-fit shaped components for side and crew compartment protection as well as complex geometries designed to protect peripheral equipment, optronics, and periscopes against ballistic threats.

Brochure: Defense

SiC & B4C armour materials for ballistic protection

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Brochure: IntrinSiC® 3D-printing

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Expert Support for Your Defense Projects

Every protection scenario is unique. We support customers in designing their ballistic systems and selecting the right Qitin® components.