Blast Pressure Measurements of an Underwater Detonation in the Sea

Abstract

Blast pressure measurements of a controlled underwater explosion in the sea were carried out. An explosive of 25-kg trinitrotoluene (TNT) equivalent was detonated, and the blast pressures were recorded by eight different high-performance pressure sensors that work at the nonresonant high-voltage output in adverse underwater conditions. Recorded peak pressure values are used to establish a relationship in the well-known form of empirical underwater explosion (UNDEX) loading formula. Constants of the formula are redetermined by employing the least-squares method in two different forms for best fitting to the measured data. The newly determined constants are found to be only slightly different from the generally accepted ones.

Keywords

Underwater explosions / High-pressure shock waves / Effects of directionality on blast pressure records / Pressure loading formulas / Applications of the least-squares method