Attempt at Numerical Representation of Gas Explosion in a Large Panel Building

Analysis of the construction market in Poland and its trends in the recent years indicates a resurgence of prefabricated technology in residential construction. The main period of prefabrication development in Poland was in the 1970s. when it was referred to as large panel. According to a report by Building Research Institute, buildings constructed with large panels are characteristics for their high durability and any damage occurring in the buildings built using the technology can be divided into two groups. The first is damage similar to that occurring in traditional construction, such as damage to partition walls, roof covering or installations. The other is damage related to the prefabrication technology itself, i.e. the production of elements (material damage) and their assembly (damage at connections). Other potential threats include mining activity in the case of buildings located in mining areas and gas explosions related to the gas systems present in this type of building. This paper, therefore, attempts to recreate the process and consequences of an explosion in a closed room of a multi-family building using a numerical model. The simulations are based on: literature data (concerning calculating and applying explosion actions) and own experience in assessing the response of a concrete structure described using an elastic-plastic-damage (e-p-d) model. The result of the analyses included indication of areas directly affected by risk of loss of stability (with potential expansion of disaster area). The paper also presents the effect of “expulsion” of an external wall due to explosion. It was found that structure failure states obtained in the analyses are fully compatible in qualitative sense with observed real construction disasters caused by explosions. Real quantitative trustworthiness should result from laboratory tests of materials from which the buildings under analysis are built of.