Effects of Expansion and Side Chambers on Reduction and Time Delay of Blast Overpressures in Underground Protective Facilities

This study presents numerical investigation of blast overpressures on blast-resistant doors by changing the number of side chambers and the number and shape of expansion chambers for an external detonation. Blast overpressures for four types of door and zero to four chambers were simulated. For the original shape of the underground ammunition magazine with side chamters installed, the peak time delay was approximately 40 ms, showing a clear different, whereas the reduction in the maximum value appeared as small as 3 kPa. Reducing the overpressure and delaying peaks using bottleneck devices and side chambers revealed that, because the size of the tunnel with underground ammunition magazines was partially reduced, the effects of the reduction and time delay of blast overpressures were negligible. When expansion chambers with a size 1.1 times the passage width and side chambers were used, the time delay in the peaks and overpressure reduction were observed. When expansion chambers with a size 1.2 times the passage width and side chambers were used, the delay and reduction effects were significant when two or more chambers were installed, and the effect was almost the same as when the size was 1.1 times the passage width.