Period-based anti-explosion protective wall: From concept to reality

This paper focuses on the development of a period-based anti-explosion protective wall, from conceptual design to experimental demonstration. The solution is based on changing the period of the structure by attaching to it a steel plate supported on rollers and connected to the protected structure by means of a series of linear elastic springs. The study firstly presents a simplified analysis based on a single degree of freedom system to evaluate the response of the protective structure under blast loading. Then, a full-scale testing campaign, including up to 12 successive explosions on the same specimen, was conducted to verify the theoretical model and assess the performance of the proposed design. The system was tested with decreasing scaled distances ranging from 1.392 m/kg 1/3 to 0.485 m/kg 1/3 , using up to 70 kg of TNT equivalent, without any significant damage to the protected structure. The pressure, acceleration, displacement and strain data of the system were recorded and analysed. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the system in mitigating blast effects, offering a novel approach to enhancing infrastructure resilience. The findings highlight the potential application of this technology for the protection of critical infrastructures, contributing to the advancement of blast-resistant designs. • Protection system withstands 12 successive explosions with minimal damage. • Steel plate and springs shift structural period to mitigate blast impact. • Experimental tests validate design using up to 70 kg TNT equivalent. • System offers a feasible retrofit solution for critical infrastructure safety.