Experimental and Numerical Study of Non-Explosive Simulated Blast Loading on Reinforced Concrete Slabs

Abstract

This study presents a non-explosive method for simulating blast loading on reinforced concrete (RC) slabs. The method involves using a newly developed blast simulator to apply a speedy impact load on the slab, which generates a pressure wave similar to that of an actual blast. Both experimental and numerical simulations were carried out to evaluate the effectiveness of the method. The experimental results showed that the non-explosive method can produce a pressure wave with a peak pressure and duration analogous to those of an actual blast. The numerical simulations also showed good agreement with the experimental results. Additionally, parameter studies were conducted to evaluate the effects of the rubber shape, the impact velocity, the bottom thickness, and the upper thickness on the impact loading. The results indicate that pyramidal rubber is more suitable as an impact cushion for simulating blast loading than planar rubber. The impact velocity has the widest range of regulation for peak pressure and impulse. As the velocity increases from 12.76 to 23.41 m/s, the corresponding range of values for peak pressure is 6.457 to 17.108 MPa, and for impulse, it is 8.573 to 14.151 MPa∙ms. The variation in the upper thickness of the pyramidal rubber has a more positive effect on the impact load than the bottom thickness. With the upper thickness increasing from 30 mm to 130 mm, the peak pressure decreased by 59.01%, and the impulse increased by 16.64%. Meanwhile, when the bottom part’s thickness increased from 30 mm to 130 mm, the peak pressure decreased by 44.59%, and the impulse increased by 11.01%. The proposed method provides a safe and cost-effective alternative to traditional explosive methods for simulating blast loading on RC slabs.

Sensitivity Analysis of Factors Influencing Blast-like Loading on Reinforced Concrete Slabs Based on Grey Correlation Degree

“…It is worth noting that when the ellipsoid thickness h2 reaches 60 mm the peak pressure decreases, and the impulse begins to show a decreasing trend. This correlation can be illustrated by Equations ( 18) and (19).…”

“…A new impact-based facility has been developed that vertically launches multi-mass impact modules to load large-size members at precisely high velocities (VMLH). Xiong Zhixiang et al [ 19 ] used the VMLH Blast Simulator to conduct two sets of impact tests: one set of tests selected a range of flat rubber thicknesses from 20 to 100 mm and impact velocities of approximately 15 m/s; the other set used conical rubbers arranged in a 5 × 5 arrangement, with impact velocities set from 10 to 25 m/s. The results show that prismatic conical rubber is more suitable than flat rubber as an impact pad for simulating blast loads.…”

“…The model includes a reinforced concrete plate, rubber, counterweight steel plate, and fixture. An eight-node solid hexahedral cell is used for meshing, and reference is made to the mesh convergence analysis performed by the previous subject group [ 19 ]; a concrete mesh size of 7.5 mm was used, doubled outside the range of ±600 mm from the center of the slab to reduce the computation time. The cell size of the impact module was 10 mm in both the edge length and thickness directions.…”

“…The European Laboratory for Structural Assessment (ELSA) has constructed a novel test facility called the Electronic Blast Simulator (e-BLAST), which utilizes servo-controlled drive technology to simulate the exposure of structures to air shock wave loading without the use of explosives. Recently, based on the blast simulator, Xiong et al [ 19 ] conducted two sets of impact tests on reinforced concrete slabs to investigate the effects of the shape of the elastic cushion and the impact velocity on the impact loading characteristics, respectively. The results show that the newly developed blast simulator, which is capable of applying explosive-like loads to reinforced concrete slabs, achieves the goal of mechanical impact as an equivalent alternative to chemical explosion tests.…”

Mechanical Research on Reinforced Concrete Materials

“…Xiong et al [9] proposed a non-explosive method to simulate the explosion load of reinforced concrete slabs, and conducted experiments and numerical simulations to evaluate the effectiveness of this method. The experimental results showed that there was almost no difference between the pressure wave and the pressure peak produced by the simulated explosion load and the actual explosion.…”