Analysis of the Fracture of Reinforced Concrete Flat Elements Subjected to Explosions. Experimental Procedure and Numerical Validation

Many of the material models most frequently used for the numerical simulation of the behavior of concrete when subjected to high strain rates have been originally developed for the simulation of ballistic impact. Therefore, they are plasticity-based models in which the compressive behavior is modeled in a complex way, while their tensile failure criterion is of a rather simpler nature. As concrete elements usually fail in tensión when subjected to blast loading, available concrete material models for high strain rates may not represent accurately their real behavior. In this research work an experimental program of reinforced concrete fíat elements subjected to blast load is presented. Altogether four detonation tests are conducted, in which 12 slabs of two different concrete types are subjected to the same blast load. The results of the experimental program are then used for the development and adjustment of numerical tools needed in the modeling of concrete elements subjected to blast.