Response of Isotropic and Laminated Plates to Close Proximity Blast Loads By

The transient response of various plate structures subject to blast loads is analyzed. In particular, simply supported isotropic and laminated composite plates are modeled using the commercial finite element code NASTRAN, and the method of modal superposition. Both analysis procedures are used to quantify the linear transient response of such plates subject to uniform and patch blast loads. Furthermore, NASTRAN is used to study the nonlinear response of plates subject to close proximity explosions. Also considered here is the case for which a blast loaded plate impacts another closely neighboring plate. The NASTRAN solution used here accounts for nonlinearities due to large plate deflections, plasticity, and plate-to-plate contact. Many studies are currently available in which the blast load is considered to be spatially uniform across the plate; with a temporal distribution described by step, N-pulse, or Friedlander equations. The novel aspect considered here is the case for which the blast pressure is due to a close proximity explosion, and is therefore taken to be both spatially and temporally varying. A FORTRAN program is described which automates the application of an arbitrary blast load to a generic finite element mesh. The results presented here are a collection of analyse