Dynamic behaviour of stiffened orthotropic plates subjected to Friedlander blast load

Abstract

The increase in the number of terrorist attacks have shown that the effect of blast loads, such as the Friedlander blast load on elements of a building structure is a serious matter. Their effects on the structure should be taken into consideration in the design of the structure's element. The objective of this study is to numerically analyze the blasting effect on stiffened orthotropic concrete plates within the elastic range of its material. The effects of the stiffener configuration, the location of the localized blast load as well as the influence of the thickness to the vertical deflection of the plate are solved numerically by using the two auxiliary equations in the x and y-directions. The analysis yields the vertical deflection versus time relationship which can be used to determine the stress distributions and the maximum stress value of the plate. This paper introduces the effect of the blast load on the orthotropic plates and essential techniques used to increase the capacity of a structure's element to provide protection against explosive effects.