Characteristics of wall pressure and cavitation on the plate subjected to underwater explosion shockwaves

Wall pressure as a load parameter should be confirmed exactly, and then offered for investigating dynamic response of structure such as a plate subjected to underwater explosion. On the basis of plane shock wave hypothesis, a theoretical formula was deduced and proposed to calculate the wall pressure values of an infinite plate subjected to underwater explosion shockwaves at any angle of incidence. By using the wall pressure data derived from underwater explosion experiments, the theoretical formula of wall pressure was revised to be suitable for plates with finite dimensions. With the revised formula, the characteristics of the wall pressure on the plate were analyzed by considering various incidence angles, and the effects of the negative wall pressure values on local cavitation on the plate were discussed primarily. The results show that the wall pressure values derived from the revised formula agree well with those from the experiments. As the incidence angle increases, the wall pressure decays more rapidly, and the absolute value of the minimum wall pressure decreases. With the more explosive or the thicker plate, the absolute value of the minimum wall pressure is larger, and local cavitation takes place more likely. Local cavitation can only come into being in certain conditions, and the cavitation range will be affected by the factors such as cavitation pressure criterion, shock intensity, and so on.