Blast Analysis

How do you determine a building’s tolerance to blast loads? One of the structural engineering services ASI offers is a blast analysis. This type of design analysis is becoming more of a priority due to recent historic events that have proven that it is vital to understand how structures behave and respond to blast attacks.

Many different tools have been developed using extensive data libraries to help identify the means of reducing and/or mitigating the dangers resulting from bomb attacks. Although these tools have been a great help in saving lives and protecting important structures, they are limited in scope and cannot create an accurate visualization of the true damage occurring to the structure or the effects of the resulting debris. ASI uses its unique Extreme Loading^® Technology (ELT) to analyze the behavior of structures subjected to blast loading. ELT is based on the Applied Element Method (AEM) which allows ASI to track and analyze structural behavior from its elastic stage to cracking, element separation and collision.

Blast Analysis Services Include:

• Estimation of blast loading on a specific structure based on the threat scenario provided by the client.
• Modeling and 3D simulation of structural and non-structural components behavior due to blast loads.
• Assessment of structural vulnerability to blast loads.
• Reactive glass analysis due to blast loads.
• Blast loads can be automatically generated using the UFC 3-340-02 Structures to Resist the Effects of Accidental Explosions or by custom generated pressure-time history.
• Assessment of debris and/or glass fragment velocity and dispersion.
• Determination of risk zones and stand-off distances.
• Recommendations for structure redesign, so as to resist provided blast loads and potential for progressive collapse.