Publications

A series of tests involving detonation of high explosive blanketed by aqueous foam (conducted from 1982 to 1984) are described in primarily terms of recorded peak pressure, positive phase specific impulse, and time of arrival. The investigation showed that optimal blast mitigation occurs for foams with an expansion ratio of about 60:1. Simple analyses representing the foam as a shocked single phase mixture are presented and shown inadequate. The experimental data demonstrate that foam slows down and broadens the propagated pressure disturbance relative to a shock in air. Shaped charges and flyer plates were evaluated for operation in foam and appreciable degradation was observed for the flyer plates due to drag created by the foam.

The Explosive Release Atmospheric Dispersion (ERAD) model is a three-dimensional numerical simulation of turbulent atmospheric transport and diffusion. An integral plume rise technique is used to provide a description of the physical and thermodynamic properties of the cloud of warm gases formed when the explosive detonates. Particle dispersion is treated as a stochastic process which is simulated using a discrete time Lagrangian Monte Carlo method. The stochastic process approach permits a more fundamental treatment of buoyancy effects, calm winds and spatial variations in meteorological conditions. Computational requirements of the three-dimensional simulation are substantially reduced by using a conceptualization in which each Monte Carlo particle represents a small puff that spreads according to a Gaussian law in the horizontal directions. ERAD was evaluated against dosage and deposition measurements obtained during Operation Roller Coaster. The predicted contour areas average within about 50% of the observations. The validation results confirm the model`s representation of the physical processes.