The Use of Rigid Polyurethane Foam as a Landmine Breaching Technique

The results of a feasibility test using Rigid Polyurethane Foam RPF as an operational anti-personnel mine counter-mine technique are presented. RPF, at a given density and thickness, can withstand the explosive effects of anti-personnel blast mines and mitigate or neutralize the effects of surface laid anti-vehicular mines. A 12-inch thick, 4 pound per cubic foot foam block completely contained a 10 gram explosive charge of PETN while a 30-inch foam block with the same density contained a 30 gram charge. A 24-inch thick pad supported 50 passes of an M88A2 Recovery Vehicle, crushing the foam no more than 2-3 inches throughout the length of a 56 foot foam roadway. Underneath this roadway, simulated land mines set at 14 psi were not detonated by the passage of an M88A2 and a HMMWV. Our experiments indicate that RPF can provide additional traction in muddy conditions and set-off explosives connected to trip wires. The pressure and trafficability experiments were conducted at the Waterways Experiment Station, Vicksburg, MS in July-August 1997, and the explosive experiments were conducted at the Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center EMRTC of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology, Socorro, NM in August and October 1997.