Thermoplastic elastomers are converted into a solid from soft rubbery polymers by physical means rather than chemical methods and the solidification is reversible, therefore making it possible to have damaged armor surface fixed in the field. According to the researchers, heating the material above the softening point（around 100℃）melts the small crystallites, enabling the fracture surfaces to meld together and reform via diffusion. This can be accomplished with a hot plate, akin to an iron, that molds the newly forming surface into a smooth, flat sheet.

(R-02)