Blast Design Considerations for

Structural Engineers
Charles J. Oswald, Ph.D., P.E.

DoD Antiterrorism Requirements

UFC 4-010-01 DoD Mimimum Antiterrorism
Standards for Buildings
Buildings (Jan 2007)
Minimum standoff distances from controlled perimeter and
parking to inhabited buildings
Window
Wi d
and
d window
i d
frame
f
design
d i standards
d d
Progressive collapse avoidance standards

Applies
pp es to new
e bu
buildings
d gs a
and
d renovations
e o at o s or
o
repairs > 50% of building replacement cost
Minimum standoffs can be reduced if justified
b blast
by
bl t analysis
l i and/or
d/ building
b ildi
hardening
h d i

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Government Building Requirements

Interagency Security Committee (ISC) Security
Design Criteria
Antiterrorist design requirements for U.S. government
buildings

Blast design requirements usually apply only

for large federal buildings (e.g. courthouses,
bu d gs)
FBI buildings)
Building structural member and windows must resist specified
external blast loads depending on required level of protection
Building must also resist several interior blast load cases
Progressive collapse avoidance requirements
Requirements for vehicle barriers around building

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Explosive Storage and Manufacturing

Building Requirements
State and federal safety requirements for
explosive storage and manufacturing areas
Protect against accidental explosion scenario

Typically
yp
y requirements
q
satisfied with
prescribed standoff distances
Otherwise, personnel protection from blast,
thermal and fragment effects must be
thermal,
designed
Personnel may be in same building or in nearby building
Design to contain explosion effects in explosion room
Design of surrounding buildings if explosion not contained

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Industrial Building Requirements

Many industrial processes may cause accidental
explosions
Petrochemical and chemical manufacturing processes

OSHA 1910 requires

q
blast siting
g analysis
y
Consequences must be estimated from credible explosion
scenarios

Building occupants must have protection from

explosion effects
Typically building occupants more at risk than personnel in
open due
d e to injury
inj
from
f om failed building
b ilding components
Buildings may require blast resistant structural upgrades to
provide required protection
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

General Blast Design Approaches

Single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) approach
Basic design approach
Combines explicit consideration of non-linear dynamic
response with design level simplicity

Equivalent static load (ESL) approach

Used for connections and other stiff members including
bracing and shear walls subject to reaction loads
Most accurate if dynamic load application is slow compared to
component response time, or natural period (i.e. no inertial
effects)

Dynamic finite element analyses

Non-linear dynamic analysis

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Basic Blast Design Assumptions

Material yield strengths increased for strainrate effects
Fast response causes high strain-rate and greater yield
strength (10% to 20% increase)

Ultimate capacity of components is used for

design
Yielding of component in ductile response
mode is typically assumed
Strengthen non-ductile response modes so they dont control
response

D
Design
i
b
based
d on allowable
ll
bl deflection
d fl ti
rather
th
than allowable stress
Typical design allows one-half of failure deflection
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

SDOF Design Procedure

Calculate dynamic load
Use applied blast load over tributary area of component
Use dynamic reaction load from cladding on framing
components

Calculate maximum dynamic deflection

Use equivalent SDOF properties of structural component and
blast load to calculate maximum deflection with SDOF
procedure
Usually ductile flexural response is assumed

Compare maximum deflection to allowable

deflection criteria

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

SDOF Design Procedure (Contd)

Must check for any instability or brittle failure
that will limit ductility
Strengthen brittle/instable failure mode so it does not control
ultimate strength
Alternatively,
Al
i l reduce
d
allowable
ll
bl deflection
d fl i and
d ultimate
li
capacity

Must follow load path to foundation

Connections
Diaphragms
Shear walls
Rigid body motion of building

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Shock Wave Applying Blast to Building

PRESSURE
TIME
AMBIENT
PRESSURE

PEAK
PRESSURE

Pso

Building

Pr
Time = T 0

T1

T2

T3

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

T4

_ Pso
Pb <
T5

Typical Idealized Blast Load Shape

Presssure

Minimum of two blast load parameters needed

to define blast load
Peak Pressure (P)
Impulse, (i)

Time
d

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Interior Explosion Blast Loads

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Blast Walls
Usually not that effective for reducing blast
Shock
Sh k wave fills
fill in
i quickly
i kl behind
b hi d blast
bl t walls
ll

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Single--Degree
Single
Degree--of
of--Freedom (SDOF) System

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

SDOF Equation of Motion

K Lm M c u (t ) + C c u (t ) + Rc u (t ) = Fc (t )
Mc = mass of blast-loaded component
Fc(t) = load history on blast-loaded
blast loaded component
Rc(u(t)) = resistance of blast-loaded component
Cc = viscous damping constant of blast-loaded component
KLm = load-mass factor (accounts for fact all mass and load
on component does not move through u(t))
u(t)
( ) = acceleration of the mass
u(t) = velocity of the mass
u(t) = displacement of the mass = max component deflection
t
= time
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Ductile Component Resistance

Midspan Deflection

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Component SDOF Properties

Mass based on component weight and loadmass factor
Resistance based on dynamic moment capacity,
end conditions and load distribution
Design moment capacity varies based on component type
and assumed strain-rate effects
Effect of axial stresses may need to be considered
Tension membrane can be included for low strength
members (i.e. cold-formed members) in more detailed
analysis

Stiffness is the ratio of resistance to component

midspan deflection
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Response Criteria
Maximum deflection defined in terms of
support rotation () and/or ductility ratio ()
2x
where = tan 1 m
L

xm
=
xe
xm = maximum component deflection
xe = deflection causing yield
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Blast Response of Light Roof System

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Available Blast Design Guidance

TM 5-1300 Structures to Resist the Effects of
Accidental Explosions
Most comprehensive manual for blast design
Probably most conservative design guidance

ASCE Design
Design of Blast Resistant Buildings for
Petrochemical Facilities
Concise though lacks detail contained in TM 5-1300
No consideration of high explosives
Design/analysis guidance provided for three damage levels

USACOE, Protective Design Center

Blast design and blast damage assessment computer
programs and detailed methodology manuals
Design/analysis guidance provided for four protection levels
STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007

Available Design Guidance (Contd)

AISC Design Manuals (ASD and LRFD)
No dynamic design criteria but useful for determining SDOF
properties and ESL design
ASD contains plastic design section (Chapter N)
LRFD tables
bl for
f compression
i members
b
and
d bolts
b l

UFC 03-340-01 DAHS Manual for Government

and
a
d Govt
Go t Contractors
Co t acto s
Intended primarily for military structures
Less conservative than TM 5 1300
Computer design tools available from USACOE PDC

STEER Meeting, March 22, 2007