Strengthening of the Structural Element by Using Armour – A Review of a Blast Protective Material

Abstract

Reinforced concrete (RC) is one of the most versatile materials used worldwide due to its strength, mouldability, excellent design life and low maintenance cost. The RC structure sustains several types of load during its service period. Unpredictable loads, such as blast loads, may come to the structure intentionally or accidentally. It is necessary to assess the behaviour of the structural element and its strengthening techniques. Structural elements may strengthen using Aramid fibre, CFRP, GFRP, etc. In the case of blast loading, armour is used as an external strengthening and gives better protection than other strengthening techniques. Armour is a protective material to protect any structural element from the sudden impact of load. Based on the composition, armours are broadly categorised as ceramic-based (Glass-ceramic), metal and alloy-based (steel) and composite ceramic (Fibre reinforced polymer with metal). Composite ceramic is lightweight and cost-effective compared with other armour materials. This study has discussed a detailed review of armour, and available experimental and numerical modelling data have been compared to evaluate its performance. It shows that numerical simulation can predict more accurately. Several types of armour damage have been observed, from which the critical parameters are maximum central deflection and plastic deformation of the armour sheet. Plastic deformation of the armour sheet increases when sheet thickness reduces. However, it performed better in bending when the thickness of the plate increased.