Title:
Retrofit of Reinforced Concrete Structures to Resist Blast Effects
Author(s):
John E. Crawford, L. Javier Malvar, James W. Wesevich, Joseph Valancius, and Aaron D. Reynolds
Publication:
Structural Journal
Volume:
94
Issue:
4
Appears on pages(s):
371-377
Keywords:
blast effects; fiber-reinforced concrete; steel jacket; composites;
DOI:
10.14359/488
Date:
7/1/1997
Abstract:
Analyses were conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of jacketing columns of existing reinforced concrete multistory buildings to improve their survivability to attacks by explosives. Different standoff distances, charge sizes, and steel and composite jackets were considered. Two building designs were analyzed: one in which the building members were designed primarily for gravity loads (UBC seismic zone 1) and one in which the members were designed to resist seismic loads (UBC seismic zone 4). Structural response predictions were performed with the three-dimensional Lagrangian finite element code DYNA3D, using a concrete material model especially designed to predict nonlinear concrete responses to explosive loads. The results indicate that jacketing can be an effective means to retrofit an existing facility to lessen its vulnerability to blast loads.