Effect of a small dike on blast wave propagation

This paper, by means of numerical simulations and experiments, investigates the effect of a small dike on the propagation of a blast wave so as to extract factors related to the strength of the blast wave on the ground. Three materials were considered in this study : detonation products, steel, and air. A cylindrical charge of pentaerythritol tetranitrate (PETN), with a diameter to height ratio of 1.0, was used in the experiments and numerical simulations. A steel dike surrounded the explosive charge on all sides. Its shape and size were parameters in this study. To elucidate the effect of the dike, we conducted two series of numerical simulations and experiments : one without a dike and one with a dike. Peak overpressures on the ground agreed with the experimental results. The numerical simulations qualitatively showed the effect of the three-dimensional diffraction and reflection of the blast wave at the dike, which affected the propagation behavior of the blast wave.