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| - The basic M52B is worn over the UNSCDF GCU and incorporates chest, back, side, and groin protection, with additional collar, upper arm, and upper leg protectors available as required. Total weight comes in at 13.6 kilograms, and while this is heavier than the earlier M51A Ballistic Assault Vest, it is lighter than the M27A Body Armour it replaced, and actually provides superior protection, though only over vital areas such as the torso. The design is intended to take the weight of the vest off the shoulders and move it to the lower torso.
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| abstract
| - The basic M52B is worn over the UNSCDF GCU and incorporates chest, back, side, and groin protection, with additional collar, upper arm, and upper leg protectors available as required. Total weight comes in at 13.6 kilograms, and while this is heavier than the earlier M51A Ballistic Assault Vest, it is lighter than the M27A Body Armour it replaced, and actually provides superior protection, though only over vital areas such as the torso. The design is intended to take the weight of the vest off the shoulders and move it to the lower torso. The M52B provides the ability to don the vest in two ways. The first is to simply place the vest over the head and pull down, and the second is to remove fasteners on the wearer's left shoulder, sliding into the vest to the right. To complete the procedure for both methods the wearer then lifts up the front panel of the vest and fastens the waistband, which takes the weight of the vest off the shoulders somewhat, and then fastens the side protection modules. The M52B's protection system is based on a layered system. The first layer consists of thin Titanium-A that provides some heat resistance against plasma weapons and is designed to abrade after being struck, the fragments interfering with laser or particle beams or plasma bolts, weakening their effectiveness. It is coated with an electrochromic material that can switch between either the Digital Universal Pattern or TriPat at will via a command from the user's standard issue neural interface. EMP-hardened microchips within the layer send out a charge (too weak to be felt), forcing a colour change. The second layer is a five millimetre sheet of boron carbide, which provides outstanding resistance to bullets, and, with a melting point of 2350 degrees Celsius, some resistance to plasma weaponry. This is backed by a one centimetre plate of incredibly strong MITHRIL armour. Due to the extreme hardness of the ceramics used, they offer superior resistance against plasma weapons and they shatter even .50 calibre rifle bullets. The (pulverised) ceramic also strongly abrades any penetrator. Against lighter projectiles the hardness of the tiles causes a "shatter gap" effect: a higher velocity will, within a certain velocity range (the "gap"), not lead to a deeper penetration but destroy the projectile itself instead. Because the ceramic is so brittle, the entrance channel of a plasma shot is not smooth — as it would be when penetrating a metal — but ragged, causing extreme asymmetric pressures which disturb the geometry of the shot, on which its penetrative capabilities are critically dependent as its mass is relatively low. This initiates a vicious circle as the disturbed blast of plasma causes still greater irregularities in the ceramic, until in the end it is defeated. The MITHRIL plate optimises this effect as tiles made with them have a layered internal structure conducive to it, causing "crack deflection". This mechanism using the blast's own energy against it, has caused some to compare the effects of MITHRIL to those of reactive armour. Should a MITHRIL plate be struck by a laser or particle beam, such as those used in Covenant Beam Rifles, a similar effect is seen as the beam is diffused and broken up by vapourised ceramic. Backing the MITHRIL plate is a second thin Titanium-A plate which reflects the impact energy back to the ceramic tile in a wider cone. This dissipates the energy, limiting the cracking of the ceramic, but also means a more extended area is damaged. Spalling caused by the reflected energy is caught by a layer of non-Newtonian gel before it can enter the user's body. As it is also heat-resistant, this layer also has the advantage of reducing the burn caused by plasma should it pierce the armour. This heat reduction layer also reduces the chance of the plasma penetrating by counter-acting and dissipating the heat, effectively disarming the blast.
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