Effect of Curvature on Shock Loading Response of Aluminum Panels

Accidental explosions or bomb blasts cause extreme loadings on civilian and military structures. These structures have different curvatures, which affect their blast mitigation properties. Thus a controlled study has been performed to understand the effect of curvature on blast mitigation. The shock tube apparatus was utilized to obtain a controlled blast loading. Aluminum 2024 T3 panels having three different curvatures (infinity, 304.8 mm, and 111.76 mm) were used in the experiments. All the panels had un-deformed dimensions of 203.2 mm × 203.2 mm × 2 mm. A fully clamped boundary condition was applied. Digital Image Correlation (DIC) techniques were applied to obtain full-field in-plane and out-of-plane deformation data and in-plane strain on the back face of the panel. The results show that the panel with a 304.8 mm radius of curvature had a better blast resistance as compared to the other two panels.