Air-blast-loaded, high-strength concrete beams. Part II: Numerical non-linear analysis

Abstract

The results from this investigation demonstrate the ability to perform numerical simulations of dynamic structural response of concrete elements subjected to air blast loading. Beams of both high-strength concrete (HSC) and normal-strength concrete (NSC) were studied. Also beams with two concrete layers of different strength were simulated. It is of particular interest to investigate the use of material models for implementation with software for the explicit analysis of non-linear dynamic events. The influences of concrete strength, amounts of reinforcement, the bond between concrete and reinforcement, bi-linear strain softening of concrete, the strain rate dependence of reinforcement and boundary conditions at the supports were studied. The simulations were performed with the text data as reference through comparison between numerical examples and experimental test results. It was possible numerically to analyse the dynamic behaviour of beams tested in situ and to describe the observed failure modes of these beams. The analysis tool will be used for evaluating the dynamic strength of future protective structures of HSC, possibly with parts consisting of NSC elements.