Implosive demolition of tall masonry and concrete chimney stacks within a designed footprint

Because of the physics involved tall masonry and concrete chimney stacks can fracture at specific points along the height of the structure such as the one third point, mid height and the two thirds point as they collapse as a result of an implosion (explosive demolition). This situation has both design and safety consequences in that the fracturing of the chimney stack along its length can lead to loss of control of the fractured length. Such a demolition is designed so that the structure falls within a designated footprint resulting in the debris pile confined within that footprint. If the structure falls outside of the footprint adjoining structures could be damaged and nearby individuals injured or killed. The process can best be demonstrated in advance of the actual implosion using Applied Element Method (AEM) software “Extreme Loading of Structures” that addresses the implosion process by simulating the stack collapse