Safety of Concrete and Masonry Structures under Unusual Loadings

Abstract

In the paper the behavior of selected brittle materials and structures (concrete and masonry) subjected to explosive loadings is discussed. For concrete the accepted Cumulative Fracture Criterion (CFC) is exposed. It describes the degradation of the material under fast dynamic processes accompanied by the strong waves propagation phenomenon and large strain rates of deformation. To overcome the computational difficulty in the analyses of such complex problems, the sub-modeling technique as well as splitting of the calculations into two separate parts: analysis of acoustic wave in the air and the propagation of stresses in structures, were used. Some instructive numerical examples of concrete and masonry walls are in focus of the presentation. The numerical tools and computer simulations allow for proper estimation of the structures safety and for taking the design decisions on how to ensure their expected strength.

The support of Ministry of Science and Higher Education under the grant N 519 419435 is kindly acknowledged.