Reference values for damage predictions of reinforced concrete slabs subjected to blast from field tests

Abstract

Destructive blast testing using explosives is one of the methods to verify the lethality of military weapons against potential military target structures. Adequate damage prediction on these structures allows for optimized planning of resources and materials for the field test. This work focuses on validating responses to recent experiments and proposing a mathematical expression to aid in predicting expected structural responses. Results from full-scale experiments were gathered to seek mathematical reference values for predicting damage in future experiments involving damage to reinforced concrete slabs. The observed damages were classified on a proposed scale with varying absolute values. A reference value equation was proposed as a prediction solution. It was concluded that variations in reinforcement ratio, scaled distance, concrete compressive strength (fck), and support conditions in the same experiment adhere to the proposed damage prediction equation.