Structures Under Shock and Impact XI (WIT Transactions on the Built Environment)

This book contains the papers to be presented at the eleventh International Conference on Structures under Shock and Impact being held in Tallinn, Estonia, July 2010, the latest in a series that began in 1989. The Conference brings together engineers and scientists from a wide range of academic disciplines and industrial backgrounds who have an interest in the shock and impact response of structures and materials. The shock and impact behavior of structures is a challenging area, not only because of the obvious time-dependent aspects, but also because of the difficulty of specifying the external dynamic loading and connection characteristics for structural designs and hazard assessments, and of obtaining the dynamic properties of materials. Particularly since 9/11, there has been increased concern for protecting public buildings, nuclear plants, and other important sites. Thus, it is important to recognize and fully utilize the contributions and understanding emerging from theoretical, numerical and experimental studies of structures, as well as investigations into material properties under dynamic loading conditions. The papers in this volume help to fulfill those needs. They reflect the broad range of practical interest in the shock and impact response of structures. The topics include various aspects of protection, such as the protection of buildings from explosive loadings and the protection of the public through structural energy absorbing systems. Other articles examine the response of concrete, composite and metal structures under a variety of impact and blast loadings. Individual papers focus on seismic loadings, missile penetration, energy-absorbing systems, structural crashworthiness and other important industrial problems, some of which are studied using numerical schemes. Several papers examine the dynamic properties of materials.