Blast Response of Reinforced Concrete Slab Stiffened with Structural Steel

In this investigation, effect of structural steel stiffening on the response of a simply supported reinforced concrete slab under air blast loading is examined. Herein, three different steel sections have been considered for the study, namely channel, I-section, and square tube. The sections are fixed on top of the concrete slab in two configurations. First configuration is developed by placing the steel beam such that its longitudinal axis is parallel to the slab surface, and in the second one, it is perpendicular to the slab surface. The dynamic response of the slab is analyzed with each combination based on the displacement at the center of the slab. The aim is to determine the steel section and configuration which mitigates the blast induced damage most efficiently. Concrete and structural steel are modeled using solid elements, while the reinforcement is modeled using beam elements. Karagozian & case concrete material model is used to define the non-linear and strain softening behavior of concrete. The results indicate that channel section with longitudinal axis parallel to the slab surface performs better than the other combinations of steel sections and configuration with all other parameters being same.