Nonlinear Structural Consequences Of Plates With Apertures Under Pulse Pressure Loads: An Experimental And Numerical Study

Abstract

This paper investigates a complex problem involving large inelastic deformation in thin clamped square ductile plates with a variety of apertures. Thin plated structures are used in a wide range of situations where the possibility of loading from a gas explosion or an IED should be considered in the design, e.g. deck plating and bulk heads on ships and offshore platforms to aircraft structure applications. The material used is Docol form 01, a highly ductile cold rolled mild steel, ideal for impact applications. The study utilizes a differential pressure device developed at the University of Liverpool Impact Research Centre capable of producing repeatable uniform transient pressure loading on 0.5 m by 0.5 m plate specimens. Structural response was investigated at two nominal pressure levels for plates with varying apertures. The effect of any pressure variance occurring around these openings in relation to global loading on the plates was also investigated. Extensive material tests were performed and parameters used in a Cowper-Symonds constitutive model. A series of FEA simulations of the blast loading was also conducted and compared with the experimental data for validation. Initial studies show a good correlation between experimental and numerical simulations.