Performance of reinforced concrete panels during blast loading

The structural integrity of reinforced concrete structures subjected to blast loading is important for critical facilities. This thesis presents experimental data generated that evaluate the performance of reinforced concrete wall panels with a wide range of construction details under blast loading. The test specimens were 4 ft. square wall panels constructed using Normal Weight Concrete (NWC) or Fiber Reinforced Concrete (FRC). FRC consists of macrosynthetic fibers dispersed in NWC. Five types of panels were tested: NWC panels with steel bar reinforcement (Type A); FRC panels without additional reinforcement (Type B); FRC panels with steel bar reinforcement (Type C); NWC panels with glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) bar reinforcement (Type D); and NWC panels reinforced with steel bar reinforcement and external bidirectional GFRP overlays on both faces (Type E). Three additional Type D panels were used as control specimens (CON). Each panel type was constructed with three thicknesses: 6 in., 10 in., and 14 in. The panels were instrumented with strain gauges, and accelerometers; in addition, pressure sensors and high speed video were used during the blast events. Panel types C and E consistently were visually damaged the least by the explosion; the damage that was visually inspected was the crack width, loss of concrete by fragmentation, and deflection of the panel. Based on these criteria panel types C and E were the best panels at resisting the blast loading. The 6 in. and 10 in. thick type B panels consistently broke into two pieces causing complete structural failure of the panel; panel type B was the worst performing panel because of the complete structural failure. The spacing of the reinforcement proves to be very important. The closer the spacing the better the panel performed at resisting damage caused by the blast. The FRC concrete performed better than the NWC, and the thickness of the panels proved to be equally important at resisting the shearing forces caused by the blast.