International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology (IJCIET)

Volume 7, Issue 4, July-August 2016, pp. 223–233 Article ID: IJCIET_07_04_018

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ISSN Print: 0976-6308 and ISSN Online: 0976-6316
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ANALYSIS OF RCC AND SIMCON

BUILDINGS SUBJECTED TO BLAST
EFFECTS
Swathi Ratna. K
M. Tech Structural Engineering Student, Civil Engineering,
AWH Engineering College, Kerala, India

ABSTRACT
A bomb explosion within or immediately nearby a building can cause
catastrophic damage on the building's external and internal structural frames,
collapsing of walls, blowing out of large expanses of windows, and shutting
down of critical life-safety systems. Loss of life and injuries to occupants can
result from many causes, including direct blast-effects, structural collapse,
debris impact, fire, and smoke. The indirect effects can combine to inhibit or
prevent timely evacuation, thereby contributing to additional casualties. In
addition, major catastrophes resulting from gas-chemical explosions result in
large dynamic loads, greater than the original design loads, of many
structures. Due to the threat from such extreme loading conditions, efforts
have been made during the past three decades to develop methods of
structural analysis and design to resist blast loads. Designing the structures to
be fully blast resistant is not a realistic and economical option, however
current engineering and architectural knowledge can enhance the new and
existing buildings to mitigate the effects of an explosion. Generally
conventional structures are not designed for blast load due to the reason that
the magnitude of load caused by blast is huge and, the cost of design and
construction is very high. As a result, the structure is susceptible to damage
from blast load. Recent past blast incidents in the country trigger the minds of
developers, architects and engineers to find solutions to protect the occupants
and structures from blast disasters. In this work, blast analysis of multi-
storeyed structures was done. Both RCC and SIMCON high rise buildings
were subjected to blast effects and their fundamental frequencies were
determined. Time history analysis was carried out in ETABS software to find
the effect of buildings subjected to blasts.
Key words: Blast loads, Fundamental Frequency, Modal Analysis, SIMCON
and Time History Analysis.

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 Swathi Ratna. K

Cite this Article: Swathi Ratna. K, Analysis of RCC and Simcon Buildings
Subjected To Blast Effects. International Journal of Civil Engineering and
Technology, 7(4), 2016, pp.223–233.
http://www.iaeme.com/IJCIET/issues.asp?JType=IJCIET&VType=7&IType=4

1. INTRODUCTION
The increase in the number of terrorist attacks especially in the last few years has
shown that the effect of blast loads on buildings is a serious matter that should be
taken into consideration in the design process. Although these kinds of attacks are
exceptional cases, man-made disasters; blast loads are in fact dynamic loads that need
to be carefully calculated just like earthquake and wind loads. Damage to the assets,
loss of life and social panic are factors that have to be minimized if the threat of
terrorist action cannot be stopped [5]. Designing the structures to be fully blast
resistant is not a realistic and economical option, however current engineering and
architectural knowledge can enhance the new and existing buildings to mitigate the
effects of an explosion.
A bomb explosion within or immediately nearby a building can cause catastrophic
damage on the building's external and internal structural frames, collapsing of walls,
blowing out of large expanses of windows, and shutting down of critical life-safety
systems. Loss of life and injuries to occupants can result from many causes, including
direct blast-effects, structural collapse, debris impact, fire, and smoke [8]. The indirect
effects can combine to inhibit or prevent timely evacuation, thereby contributing to
additional casualties. In addition, major catastrophes resulting from gas-chemical
explosions result in large dynamic loads, greater than the original design loads, of
many structures. Due to the threat from such extreme loading conditions, efforts have
been made during the past three decades to develop methods of structural analysis and
design to resist blast loads.

1.1. Ideal Blast Wave

An explosion can be defined as a very fast chemical reaction involving a solid, dust or
gas, during which a rapid release of hot gases and energy takes place. The
phenomenon lasts only some milliseconds and it results in the production of very high
temperatures and pressures. During detonation the hot gases that are produced expand
in order to occupy the available space, leading to wave type propagation through
space that is transmitted spherically through an unbounded surrounding medium.
Along with the produced gases, the air around the blast (for air blasts) also expands
and its molecules pile-up, resulting in what is known as a blast wave and shock front
[22].
Fig1 shows the idealised profile of the pressure in relation to time for the case of a
free air blast wave, which reaches a point at a certain distance from the detonation
[22]. The pressure surrounding the element is initially equal to the ambient pressure
Po, and it undergoes an instantaneous increase to a peak pressure Pso at the arrival
time tA, when the shock front reaches that point. The time needed for the pressure to
reach its peak value is very small and for design purposes it is assumed to be equal to
zero. The peak pressure Pso is also known as side-on overpressure or peak
overpressure. The value of the peak overpressure and the velocity of propagation of
the shock wave decreases with increase in distance from the detonation centre. After
its peak value, the pressure decreases with an exponential rate until it reaches the
ambient pressure at tA+to, to being called the positive phase duration. After the

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 Analysis of RCC and Simcon Buildings Subjected To Blast Effects

positive phase of the pressure-time diagram, the pressure becomes smaller (referred to
as negative) than the ambient value, and finally returns to it.

Figure 1 Ideal Blast Wave’s Pressure Time History

The negative phase is longer than the positive one, its minimum pressure value is
denoted as Pso - and its duration as to. During this phase the structures are subjected
to suction forces, which is the reason why sometimes during blast loading glass
fragments from failures of facades are found outside a building instead in its interior.
During detonation the hot gases that are produced expand in order to occupy the
available space, leading to wave type propagation through space that is transmitted
spherically through an unbounded surrounding medium. Along with the produced
gases, the air around the blast (for air blasts) also expands and its molecules pile-up,
resulting in what is known as a blast wave and shock front.
The negative phase of the explosive wave is usually not taken into account for
design purposes as it has been verified that the main structural damage is connected to
the positive phase. Additionally, the pressures that are produced from the negative has
of the blast wave are relatively small compared to those of the positive phase and
since these are in the opposite direction, it is usually on the safe side to assume that
they do not have a big impact on the structural integrity of buildings under blast loads.
However, the pressures that are below the ambient pressure value should be taken into
account if the overall structural performance of a building during a blast is assessed
and not only its structural integrity. The damage in a building depends on the energy
imparted to it through the reflected shock front of explosion, which is contributed by
both the positive and negative phases of the pressure-time history. The pressure and
hence forces on the building vary in time and space over the exposed surface of the
building, depending on the location of the detonation in relation to the building.
Therefore, when studying the response of a structure under a specific blast, the
location of detonation which produces the most severe effects on the structure should
be identified.

1.2. Weapons of Blast

An explosion is a sudden release of energy, which can be caused by many sources,
namely mechanical, chemical and nuclear in the increasing order of potential to cause
damage. Explosives are classified as low and high depending on the amount of energy
released by them and the consequent damage caused by them. The low explosives
only burn, but do not detonate. They are set-off to deflagrate, rather than to detonate.
They are primarily used as propellants, and have a cut-off detonation speed of about

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 Swathi Ratna. K

1000m/s. An example of the low explosive is the black powder [13]. On the other
hand, the high explosive is designed to shatter, rather than to push.Different explosive
materials release different amounts of energy per unit mass (energy density) upon
detonation. The nature of the shockwave produced and the magnitude of the pressure
generated from an explosion is thus dependent on the type of explosive involved. This
creates a potential difficulty in blast load analysis as various explosive materials
generate unique blast wave parameters in an explosion and would require knowledge
of explosion behaviour and characteristics of a large number of explosives (Cooper
1994; Held 1983).Trinitrotoluene (TNT) is, therefore, used as the standard explosive
to which all other explosives are compared and their equivalence to TNT established
(PEC and Baker Risk 2008). TNT equivalence is used to represent the mass of TNT
that will produce the same amount of energy or explosion effects as a unit mass of a
particular explosive in an explosion (Sochet 2010). TNT conversion factors have been
determined for different explosive materials and tabulated in a number of blast design
guides (PEC and Baker Risk 2008). For the purpose of this thesis, all explosive charge
materials other than TNT are converted to TNT equivalent masses.Depending on the
type of explosion, the detonation speed can be in the range 1000-9000 m/s. Examples
of the high explosives are dynamite and TNT. Two significant by-products of an
explosion are large amount of heat and extremely high overpressure in the air
adjoining the explosive. For instance, a small amount of explosive of 1 gram of TNT
alone produces 1120 calories of heat. Clearly, very high temperatures are feasible in
the vicinity of the explosion. Hence, flammable material must be kept away from
potentially hazardous areas where explosions can be expected.

1.3. SIMCON
The investigations conducted in North Carolina University have demonstrated that a
special type of continuous fiber-mat HPFRCC, called SIMCON which stands for
Slurry Infiltrated Mat Concrete, is well suited for the development of novel repair,
retrofit and new-construction solutions that lead to economical and improved
structural performance. SIMCON uses a manufactured continuous mat of interlocking
discontinuous steel fibers, placed in a form, and then infiltrated with flow able
cement-based slurry. The use of continuous mats, typically made with stainless steel
to control corrosion in very thin members, permits development of high flexural
strengths and very high ductility with a reduced volume of fibers. SIMCON uses a
manufactured continuous mat of interlocking discontinuous steel fibers, placed in a
form, and then infiltrated with flow able cement-based slurry.
The use of continuous mats, typically made with stainless steel to control
corrosion in very thin members, permits development of high flexural strengths and
very high ductility with a reduced volume of fibers. In a retrofit situation continuous
SIMCON fiber-mats, delivered in large rolls, can be easily installed by wrapping
around members to be rehabilitated. In new construction of high-performance
composite frames SIMCON is well suited for manufacturing high strength, high
ductility, and thin stay-in-place formwork elements that eliminate the need for
secondary and most of the primary reinforcement. A two-dimensional layout of
SIMCON and its unique manufacturing properties related to its fiber-mat
configuration, open up novel possibilities for a cost-effective and improved structural
performance that were not previously possible using other HPFRCCs, FRCs or any
other conventional construction materials. Construction with SIMCON was also
found to be simpler than if other HPFRCs, reinforced concrete, steel plates or
different non-cement based composites were used.

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 Analysis of RCC and Simcon Buildings Subjected To Blast Effects

2. MODELLING
For the present thesis work, modelling and analysis are carried out for rectangular
shaped building. The rectangular building plan is shown in fig.2. All storeys are
similar to ground floor plan. In this thesis, RCC and SIMCON are the two materials
used for the building design. Total 12 models i.e. 6 models using RCC and 6 models
using SIMCON are considered for the study. A rectangular shaped building is
modeled in both RCC and SIMCON. Three, five, seven, nine, twelve and fifteen
storey buildings both in RCC and SIMCON are modeled. The height of each floor in
all cases is taken as 3m. The material properties for SIMCON are obtained from
experimental results [8].

Figure 2 Rectangular Building Plan

The space frame building is modelled in Etabs. The beams and columns are
modelled as frame elements and the slab is modelled as a shell element. The wall is
considered to be made of brick having thickness 230mm. The wall load is assigned on
the beams. The bottom of the frame is fixed. The thickness of slab is 200mm for all
the cases. The beam and column details are shown in table.1.

Table.1 Beam and Column Details

No. of Storeys Beam Size Column Size
(mm x mm) (mm x mm)
3 Storey 250 x 350 250 x 450
5 Storey 350 x450 350 x 350
7 Storey 350 x 450 350 x 350
9 Storey 350 x 450 350 x 350
12 Storey 400 x 450 400 x 550
15 Storey 450 x 450 450 x 600
The concrete used for RCC building is M60 and Fe415 steel. The 3 D models of
15 storey RCC building and SIMCON building are shown in fig.3 and fig.4.

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 Swathi Ratna. K

Figure 3. 15 Storey RCC Building Figure 4. 15 Storey SIMCON Building

3. ANALYSIS
Modal analysis is used to determine a structure’s vibration characteristics like natural
frequencies and mode shapes. It is the most fundamental of all dynamic analysis types
and is generally the starting point for other, more detailed dynamic analyses. Define
various loads (Dead load, live load, Earthquake load) in Etabs software. In dead Load,
self weight multiplier is used 1 to calculate dead load as default. Live load or any
other define load, the multiplier is zero. After defining loads and various load
combinations the modal analysis is carried out. The frequencies of mode number upto
12 are considered for the thesis work. Brick wall load is assigned on beams. The brick
wall of 230mm thickness is considered. Time history analysis is used to determine the
dynamic response of a structure to arbitrary loading. ETABS can complete any
number of time history cases in a single execution of the program. Each case can
differ in the load applied and in the type of analysis to be performed. The pressure and
time for time history analysis is calculated as per IS 4991:1968 Criteria for Blast
Resistant Design OF Structures for Explosions above Ground. The time history
analysis is carried out using Etabs software. The pressure versus time plot is like a
triangular time history function.

4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSIONS

The fundamental frequencies for all SIMCON buildings are greater than RCC
buildings. The increase in the frequency of the SIMCON buildings is mainly due to its
high strength, high energy absorption capacity when blast wave reaches the building
and high ductility. The SIMCON buildings with lesser number of storeys have higher
fundamental frequencies than RCC buildings. The increase in the frequencies for
SIMCON buildings shows the ability of SIMCON to resist blast effects to a great
extend. But higher storied buildings have comparatively low frequencies because as
the height of building increases or number of storeys increases the fundamental
frequency decreases. But SIMCON buildings have greater fundamental frequency
than the RCC buildings even if there is variation in height of the buildings. The
fundamental frequencies for RCC and SIMCON buildings are given in table.2.

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 Analysis of RCC and Simcon Buildings Subjected To Blast Effects

Table 2 Fundamental Frequencies of RCC and SIMCON Buildings

Fundamental Frequency Fundamental Frequency
Storey for RCC Building for RCC Building
(Hz) (Hz)
3 2.45478 3.15365
5 2.17971 2.79309
7 1.59135 2.03673
9 1.24592 1.59333
12 1.01506 1.30160
15 0.85361 1.02370
Overall dynamic behavior of SIMCON buildings is better than RCC buildings. As
the height of SIMCON buildings increases, its frequency decreases but then also it is
greater than RCC buildings. Table.3 shows the frequencies of SIMCON buildings for
all 6 cases which is studied in this thesis. A graph which shows the variation of
fundamental frequency with height is shown in fig.6.

Table 3 Frequencies of 3, 5, 7, 9, 12 and 15 storey SIMCON Buildings

Mode No. 3 storey 5 storey 7 storey 9 storey 12 storey 15 storey
1 3.15 2.79 2.03 1.59 1.30 1.02
2 4.05 3.42 2.50 1.96 1.49 1.16
3 4.29 3.49 2.52 1.97 1.58 1.27
4 9.64 8.53 6.20 4.85 3.99 3.15
5 12.8 10.5 7.66 6.01 4.61 3.62
6 13.9 10.9 7.83 6.06 4.81 3.86
7 15.8 14.5 10.6 8.35 6.97 5.56
8 22.4 18.3 13.1 10.2 8.15 6.47
9 25.7 19.5 13.8 10.6 8.18 6.54
10 27.1 20.4 15.0 11.8 9.94 6.93
11 27.9 25.1 19.0 14.7 11.6 9.30
12 29.0 26.3 19.4 15.3 11.7 9.31

35

30 3 STOREY

25
Frequency, Hz

5 STOREY

20
7 STOREY
15
9 STOREY
10

5 12
STOREY
0
15
1 4 7 10 STOREY
Mode Number

Figure 6 Graph of SIMCON buildings showing variation of Frequency with different stories

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 Swathi Ratna. K

The comparison graphs of top storey displacements for both RCC and SIMCON
three, five and seven storey buildings are shown in fig.7, fig.8, fig.9, fig.10, fig.11 and
fig.12. All other storeys had lesser storey displacements when compared to top
storeys. From the obtained values for top storey displacements, it could be concluded
that RCC buildings have larger storey displacements when compared to SIMCON
buildings. The increase in the frequency of the SIMCON buildings is mainly due to its
high strength, high energy absorption capacity when blast wave reaches the building
and high ductility. RCC buildings have greater storey displacements when compared
to SIMCON buildings. The decrease in the storey displacements of the SIMCON
buildings is mainly due to its high strength, high energy absorption capacity when
blast wave reaches the building and high ductility. Also as the height of the buildings
increases the storey displacements also increases but here also the displacements are
less in SIMCON buildings. The top storeys have large displacements when compared
to bottom storeys because flexural strength of buildings decreases as its height
increases.
35
30
Displacement, mm

25
Top Storey

20
15 RCC
10
SIMCON
5
0
5 20 40
Stand Off Distance, m

Figure 7 Top storey displacement for 3 storey

50
Displacement, mm

40
Top Storey

30
20 RCC

10 SIMCON

0
5 20 40
Stand off Distance, m

Figure 8 Top storey displacement for 5 storey

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 Analysis of RCC and Simcon Buildings Subjected To Blast Effects

60

Displacement, mm
40

Top Storey
20 RCC
SIMCON
0
5 10203040

Stand off Distance, m

Figure 9 Top storey displacement for 7 storey

Displacement,… 80
Top Storey

60
40
RCC
20
SIMCON
0
5 20 40
Stand off Distance, m

Fig.10: Top storey displacement for 9 storey

70
Top Storey Displacement,

60
50
40
mm

30 RCC
20
SIMCON
10
0
5 20 40
Stand off Distance, m

Figure 11 Top storey displacement for 12 storey

80
Displacement, mm

70
60
Top Storey

50
40
30 RCC
20 SIMCON
10
0
5 20 40

Stand off Distance, m

Figure 12 Top storey displacement for 15 storey

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 Swathi Ratna. K

5. CONCLUSIONS
After completing the present work on analysis of RCC and SIMCON buildings
subjected to blast effects the following conclusions have been made.
1. SIMCON buildings have more fundamental frequency than RCC buildings. Overall
dynamic behavior of SIMCON buildings is better than RCC buildings.
2. As the height of SIMCON buildings increases, its frequency decreases but then also it
is greater than RCC buildings.
3. RCC buildings have greater storey displacements when compared to SIMCON
buildings.
4. The top storeys have large displacements when compared to bottom storeys.
5. As the height of the buildings increases the storey displacements also increases but
here also the displacements are less in SIMCON buildings.
6. When standoff distance decreases then the blast effect on the building increases. But
the blast effects on SIMCON buildings are comparatively less when compared to
RCC buildings. The reduced displacements in SIMCON buildings subjected to blast
effects shows that these structures can resist blast effects greatly than RCC buildings.

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