Protection Engineering Consultants (PEC), in cooperation with PPG Industries, Inc., is investigating the performance of a clear polymer coating material for windows subjected to blast loading. PEC developed a static test fixture and performed static tests to evaluate the retrofit window response. PEC then performed preliminary single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) analysis, using a resistance function for the clear polymer coated glazing based on the quasi-static test results. Dynamic (full-scale blast) tests were then performed in Yancey, Texas with the assistance of Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). The dynamic test results were then used to determine strain rate effects, resulting in dynamic increase factors for the static resistance functions. The clear polymer coated windows absorbed energy during the blast load through large deflections and allowed very few fragments within the test structure. This paper summarizes the test results and analysis and provides recommendations for further development of this composite glass/polymer system.

Protection Engineering Consultants (PEC), in cooperation with PPG Industries, Inc., is investigating the performance of a new glass technology for antiterrorism/force protection (ATFP) applications. This new PPG glass product is significantly stronger than typical fully tempered glass, which is advantageous in impact, ballistic, and blast resistant window design. This paper compares the performance of this new glass technology, known as Herculite ® XP glazing, to that of traditional (annealed and fully-tempered) glazing subjected to blast loads. The performance of the Herculite ® XP glazing is based on results from a series of static tests and a large-scale blast test on eight windows. The results of the static and dynamic tests are briefly discussed. A brief discussion is also included on the use of a statistical fracture based glass strength model called the Glass Failure Prediction Model (GFPM) that was used to develop Herculite ® XP resistance functions employed in single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) blast response models.

No abstract

No abstract