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Source:http://ritastatusreport.blogspot.ca/2015/06/guns-and-ammunition.html
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Author:  chickentikka_EU/ Y Liu
原作者：chickentikka_EU/ Y Liu

I am planning to write a series of articles on common misconceptions regarding tanks. Tell me if you want to see more. (This article is related to my project, so please point out suggestions)
我打算写一系列的关于坦克的常见误解的文章。如果还想看到更多文章的话请跟我说（这篇文章和我的课题有关系，所以请提供各种意见）

The balance between the power of the main gun (penetration and damage caused) and the effective armor of tanks has been almost in equilibrium for the most part of tank development history. It was after World War II, when the introduction of anti-tank missiles caused the equilibrium to shift towards the offensive. However, obviously armor cannot lag behind the offensive weapons for a long time, so soon composite armor was developed to return the balance. Of course the introduction of ERA and depleted Uranium armor happened to add further shifts in the balance. So I want to resolve some common misconceptions regarding armor and ammunition. (This time round is going to be ammo/gun, maybe armor next time if this article is welcomed).
坦克的发展历史上，主炮的火力（击穿能力与可造成的伤害）与坦克的防护可靠性一直都是处在一个平衡的位置上的。二战后，反坦克导弹的出现使得这个天平开始向火力一测倾斜。然而防护能力不能长时间的落后于进攻性武器，所以复合式装甲就被发明了出来，以平衡进攻与防守之间的天平。当然了，由于爆反和贫铀装甲的出现，这个天平又一次的出现了倾斜。（这次文章的主题是主炮/弹药，如果文章反响不错的话，下次也许可能会讲讲装甲）

What do you do to increase penetration? Well, simple, make the caliber bigger and the gun longer! This is true but it depends on the type of ammo. For example, an Indian Army’s T-90S is not going to have the same penetration as Russia’s newest T-90AM although the guns are identical, the shells can make a significant difference. We know that to increase momentum, we have to increase either the mass of the projectile or the velocity, either way we have to increase ammo size or barrel length. The good example is probably the long 8.8cm and the short 8.8cm gun, the longer the barrel, the greater the accuracy and the greater the velocity (in the case of the 8.8cm gun, a longer ammunition is used to pack more punch). However, there is a certain limit to how long the gun can be before it becomes impractical, so engineers after WW2 introduced smooth-bore guns. Smooth-bore is when the barrel no longer has grooves, hence opposite of rifled guns.
那要怎么样才能提高穿深呢？其实很简单，把口径弄大，炮管弄长就可以了！这点固然没错，但是还是要取决于弹药的种类。举个栗子，印度的T-90S和俄罗斯的最新式的T-90AM的穿深就肯定不一样，尽管主炮一样，但是弹药带来的差距是非常巨大的。我们知道，想要增加动能的话，要么去增加被投射的物体的质量，或者是速度。无论怎么样都要增加炮弹的尺寸，或者是把炮管加长。这里再举一个长8.8cm炮和短8.8cm炮的栗子，炮管越长，精度越高，速度也就越高（在8.8cm炮这个栗子当中，他们选择了增加炮弹的长度以增加杀伤力）。然而炮管的长度也是有限制的，不然就太不过现实了。所以二战后的工程师们做出了滑膛炮。滑膛炮和线膛炮截然相反，膛线彻底的取消了。

This means there is less friction, hence the shells will exit the barrel at a greater velocity than rifled guns.
这就意味着摩擦力更低，这样炮弹在出膛的时候比使用线膛炮能获得更大的速度。

Difficulties with smooth-bore guns are that they lose accuracy as the whole point of rifled guns is to make the shell spin. It works just like throwing a rugby ball or American football, you’ve got to spin it to increase stability and accuracy. The solution to that is to add fins on the shells. Clever isn’t it?
然而滑膛炮的困难在于精准度的下降，因为线膛炮的本意就是让炮弹旋转起来。就像在丢橄榄球一样，总得让球旋转起来才能提高它的稳定性和精准度。对此的解决办法则是在炮弹上加上了弹翼使之稳定。很聪明吧？

Armour Piercing Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot, APFSDS rounds and other technology makes modern ammunitions very powerful against tanks.  Let’s begin talking about the different calibres!
Armour Piercing Fin Stabilized Discarding Sabot，也就是尾翼稳定脱壳穿甲弹和其它的技术使得现代弹药在攻击坦克时威力巨大。接下来要讨论的话题是不同的口径。

105mm Gun
105mm的主炮

Classic 105mm guns mounted on M60 or M1 (early variant) had a muzzle velocity of 1501m/s on its kinetic rounds weighing at 5.8kg. The kinetic energy is 6.55 Mega Joules.
Leopard 2’s Rh120 120mm smooth-bore gun has a muzzle velocity of 1650m/s and weighs 7.1kg, kinetic energy is 10 mega Joules. The kinetic energy of the 120mm gun is about 50% more than the 105 gun. The breech pressure of the 120mm gun is 6.3*10^8 Pa which is 6300 times the atmospheric pressure which is about 50% more than the 105mm gun.  (Note to calculate penetration we have to convert the values to the standard RHA)
在M60或者M1（早期型号）上装的始祖版105mm炮在使用它的5.8公斤动能弹时的炮口初速是1501m/s，而炮弹的动能是6.55百万焦耳。豹II的莱茵金属120mm滑膛炮在使用7.1公斤的动能弹时的炮口初速在1650m/s，动能是一千万焦耳。120mm炮的动能大约比1.5mm炮要多出一半左右。而120mm的膛底压力是6.3*10^8帕，也就是标准大气压的6300倍，同样也比105mm炮多出一半左右。（要计算穿深的话要把所有数据都转换成能击穿多少厚度的轧制均质装甲才行）
译注：此处计算焦耳所用公式为KE= 0.5*m*(v^2)

Imagine the kinetic round trying to rip through the thick armour of a modern main battle tank with composite armour. The material in the armour is not all metallic, there are some materials inside it that can really absorb the kinetic energy effectively. After penetration, remember the shell still has to have enough energy to kill the crew etc. Not as easy as you might think it would be.
想象一下一枚正在试图穿透使用了复合装甲的现代主战坦克的动能弹。复合装甲的材质并不是全都是金属，在装甲内部有一些可以很好的吸收动能的材料。在击穿装甲之后，请记住这枚炮弹依然需要留有足够的动能来击杀乘员什么的。其实和想象的不一样，一点都不简单。

Be careful tank addicts, penetration values from different nations are done under different conditions so the result may be misleading. Don’t just compare raw data, it can mislead you.
各位坦克厨请注意，各个国家的穿深值是在不同情况下测试得出的，所以结果可能具有误导性。请不要直接拿数据来对比，可能会出现各种误导性的结果。

Armour on modern main battle tanks:
关于现代坦克的装甲：

Most modern Main Battle tanks have a RHA value of 600-700mm so 120mm rounds currently will require quite ideal situations to penetrate tanks. Western designer’s solutions are generally to increase length of barrel and improve ammo types, but the potential in the 120mm guns can only go so far (so not room for improvement anymore).
大部分主战坦克的装甲在换算成轧制均质装甲的厚度后一般都有600~700mm的值，所以120mm的炮弹是需要在很理想的情况下才能够击穿坦克的。西方设计师的解决办法一般都是加长炮管以及对弹药种类进行改良，但是120mm炮的潜力只有这点了（没有什么可以提升的空间了）

Most people know that Western countries (NATO) tend to use 120mm guns and Soviet (Russian/Chinese) guns are 125mm. Historically, Americans developed a 90mm, the Soviets then designed the 100mm, then NATO used 105mm which led to the Soviets to design a 115mm and so on until the recent 125mm. Almost every Soviet design wants to remain 5mm or 10mm greater than that of the NATO guns of the same period.
大多数人都知道，西方国家（NATO）倾向于使用120mm炮，而苏联（俄罗斯/中国）的炮都是125mm的。史实角度上来说，美国人开发了一个90mm，之后苏联弄出了100mm，然后NATO使用了105mm炮，使得苏联人设计了115mm直到最近的125mm。基本上每个苏联炮的设计都想要比同时期的NATO炮的口径大个5mm或者10mm

You would think that power is greater with bigger guns because as the dimensions increase, more gunpowder can be filled. Not always the case, let me tell you why.
各位可能认为口径越大威力就越大，因为直径增加了，可以装更多的火药。然而这并不适用于所有情况，理由如下：

1. Power of shell depends on the amount of gunpowder
   弹药的威力取决于装药量
2. The type of gunpowder
   火药种类
3. Shape of projectile
   炮弹的形状
4. Size (mass) of projectile
   弹药的尺寸（质量）
5. Breech pressure etc.
   膛压等等

Here I would like to use an interview with the father of the Type 99 MBT.
以下引用一段99式主战坦克之父的采访：

This tank designer was in his 90s when he finished the Type 99 project (he only had one arm due to the Korean War). He died recently and received many awards for his outstanding courage to take up a new project as head designer at the age of 80. (Interview is here, not in English though but is quite useful information)
坦克设计师在完成99式计划的时候已经90岁了（由于朝鲜战争的原因只有一只胳膊）。最近去世了，由于敢于在80岁高龄提出全新的计划的勇气获得了许多奖项。（采访正片为2014年CCTV的《大家》祝榆生·揭秘99式坦克）

So during the interview, he was asked why did you choose 125mm gun and not the 120mm when some people argued that 120mm gun was better (because Western designs are supposed to be better)? He replied: 120mm rounds had a capacity of 9.8 liters and 125mm rounds had a capacity of 13.4 liters. So Russians with poorer gun powder can still achieve power equivalent to the 120mm guns by simply filling more gun powder. After improving quality of the steel and production quality, the Type 99’s gun had better power than its opponents. (Note: other countries also improve so the comparison was based on existing operational guns, Type 99’s 125mm comparison was done with 125mm from T-72)
在采访中，他被问到为什么选择125mm炮而不是120mm炮，而且有些人声称120mm炮更好（因为是西方的设计所以就更好）？他的回答是：120mm的炮弹容量药室容积是9.8升，而1 25mm炮弹的容量药室容积是13.4升。所以火药质量差一些的俄罗斯人可以通过塞进去更多的火药来达到120mm炮的效用。在提高了钢铁的质量和生产质量后，99式的主炮威力比竞争对手的都要大（注：其他国家也在进行各种改良，所以对比是基于现在在服役的坦克炮上的，99式的125mm炮的对比是和T-72的125mm进行的）

During the designing of M1A1 and Type 90 (Japanese), America and Japan both wanted to produce their own 120mm however, it turned out that it was so difficult that they instead just bought the production license from Germany. (Really says something about German engineering).
在设计M1A1和90式（日本的）时，美国人和日本人都想要生产他们自己的120mm炮。然而他们发现生产起来困难很大，所以直接就从德国买来了生产许可。（说明德国的设计真的是很可以）

Let’s compare the 125mm (Russian) gun’s kinetic energy which is 9.6 Mega Joules, hang on! Wait, why has the 125mm got less kinetic energy than the leopard’s 120mm’s 10mega Joules?
（苏联的）的125mm的主炮的动能是9.6百万焦耳，为什么125mm炮的动能比豹II的120mm炮的一千万焦耳要低呢？

Well, it just tells you that can’t simply compare the calibre. I want to emphasize that the gun on the Armada is supposedly better than the 125mm on the T-90 so you take that into perspective as well. Just like the fact that the Norinco (Chinese) 125mm on the Type 99 is superior to the T-90’s gun although the same caliber does not mean same power.
你看，我刚才说过不能直接拿口径来对比的。我想要强调的是在Armada上的炮应该是比T-90上的125mm要好的，所以各位请不要忘了这一点。就像99式的由北方工业生产的125mm尽管口径相同，但是威力比T-90的要大一样。

140mm

Now, let’s talk about 140mm gun. 20 or 30 years ago, Swiss and German engineers began designing the 140mm guns which was fitted on leopard 2 for firing tests. It proved that 140mm was viable on main battle tanks so British Royal Ordnance Nottingham also produced a 140mm for testing. But due to relaxation since there will be no urgent need to fit 140mm gun for a new major ground based war, it is not going to be implemented soon.
现在是时候说说140mm炮了。二三十年前，瑞士和德国的工程师们开始设计可以装在豹II上的140mm炮用于设计测试。他们证明在主战坦克装上140mm上是可行的，所以英国皇家军械部也生产了一个用于测试的140mm炮。然而由于近期不会有需要用到140mm的以地面为主的战争，他们是不会把这杆炮拿出来用的。

According to declassified documents, modified 120mm smooth-bore guns have a maximum penetration of 700-750mm RHA penetration while 140mm has 900-930mm RHA so the penetration value increased by 30% from the 10 mega Joules to 15-16 Mega Joules (50% increase).
由一些解密的文档来看，改造过的120mm滑膛炮可以击穿700~750mm的轧制均质装甲，而140mm的穿深可以达到900~930mm。所以穿深值上升了大约30%，而动能从一千万焦耳提高到了一千五百万~一千六百万焦耳左右（50%的提升）。

Why don’t we fit the 140mm?
为什么我们不用140mm炮呢？

1. Gun barrel made more compact with stronger and thicker barrels to withstand the increased pressure (6400Pa (120mm) to 8000Pa (140mm)) .
   要使用更加紧凑的材料来生产炮管，而且炮管要加粗加厚以承受增加的膛压（从120mm的（6400倍标准大气压）提高到了（140mm的）8000倍）
2. Solve recoil issues, the recoil of 120mm firing APFSDS has a force of equivalent 40-50 tons. 140mm has over 60 tons.
   解决后坐力问题，发射APFSDS的120mm的后坐力大约在40~50吨左右，而140mm的后坐力超过了60吨。
3. Reduce the burning caused by friction in the barrel. This is required to increase the life span of the gun. No point having a gun that requires replacement every few hundred rounds
   要降低由于炮管内部的摩擦力带来的燃烧的问题。这个其实是要增加炮管的寿命。因为每打个几百发就要换掉的炮管还不如不要。
4. Increase reliability of auto-loaders, currently firing around 20 shells, there will be at least one problem. Although when problems occur, it can be switched to manually reloading but 140mm is way heavier to handle.
   增加自动装填机的可靠性，现在的话是大约发射20发炮弹就会至少出现一次问题。尽管出现问题时可以换成手动装填，但是140mm的炮弹搬起来更重。
5. The shell (ammo) has to be completely redesigned to adjust to the changes. So, increasing dimensions results in less shells being carried.
   炮弹必须要彻底重新设计以适应调整。所以增加口径的结果就是载弹量降低。
6. Many features of the tank has to be redesigned to accommodate the new gun. Turret side etc.
   坦克的很多机制都必须要重新设计以适应新的炮。比如炮塔侧什么的。

Conclusion
结论

The data from the 140mm gun from the leopard 2 shows the barrel length is 47 times the barrel diameter. Breech pressure being 8000Pa and material of the shell is Tungsten Alloy. (W-Ni-Fe、W-Ni-Cu、W-Ni-Cu-Fe)
豹II的140mm炮的数据显示炮管倍径是47倍，膛压是8000Pa，炮弹的材料是钨合金。（W-Ni-Fe、W-Ni-Cu、W-Ni-Cu-Fe）

It seems like 140mm guns are ready but placing it into service in what kind of scale remains a question of international situations.  I just want to round off this by mentioning a type of ammo using depleted uranium. Depleted uranium is favored by the gunner for penetration because it is self-sharpening and flammable.
看起来140mm炮已经可以用了，但是把它在什么情况下投入使用还要取决于国际形势。这次结尾给大家稍微谈一下贫铀弹。炮手是非常喜欢用贫铀弹来击穿目标的的，因为它具有自锐性，而且是易燃的。

Depleted uranium is harmful and it is used in both ammunition and armor. Many countries have the technology to incorporate it into their tanks but choose not to, a good example is the Type 99 reportedly having such modifications but not mass produced because the nation is not in a war and would harm operators through radiation. If you ask me if depleted uranium should be allowed, I just say that it depends on the results gathered if the radiation is life threateningly dangerous or not.
贫铀是一种有害的位置，在弹药和装甲中都有用到。许多国家都有可以把贫铀做进坦克中的科技，但是他们选择了不去这么做。99式就是个很好的例子，它的确是有这种改装，但是没有进行量产的原因是现在并不在战争时期，而贫铀会对操作人员产生辐射影响。如果你问我说贫铀到底应不应该拿出来用，我只能说这个取决于辐射剂量到底会不会威胁到生命。

Hopefully you have enjoyed this article.  I will talk about other types of defenses if you want to see more on this topic (probably talking about ERA, active and passive defense systems including laser weapons on tanks or special guns designed to push people out of buildings).
希望各位喜欢这篇文章。如果各位想看到更多关于这个话题的新闻的话，我会稍微说一下其它种类的防御什么的（有可能说下爆反，主动和被动防御，包括坦克上的激光武器，还有特殊的专门用于把人从楼里面驱赶出去的武器）