Application of high performance computing to rapid assessment of tunnel vulnerability to explosive blast and mitigation strategies

Abstract

To credibly assess tunnel vulnerabilities to explosives and the mitigation of these vulnerabilities, one must consider the energetic source of the shock, the geophysical response of the surrounding soil or rock under strong dynamic loading, and the structural and material response of the tunnel to the explosion. Tools used for such assessments often require significant computational resources and expert analyses. This chapter provides a concise overview of some recent high fidelity multiphysics approaches to modeling tunnel structures and the need for careful experimental validation of these models. Presented also is an example of how the building of reduced order models from these higher fidelity capabilities can help to quickly estimate the effects of explosions within carefully defined tunnel scenarios.