Comparative Blast Performance of Arched and Three-Layer Space-Frame Shields for Offshore Platforms

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Faculty of Civil Engineering, Babol Noshirvani University of Technology, Babol, Iran

Abstract

Accidental gas explosions on fixed offshore jacket platforms can impose short-duration, high-intensity loads on safety-critical topside and primary structural components. This study evaluates two lightweight blast-shield concepts intended to reduce structural demand: a convex arched double-layer space frame that promotes shock-wave deflection and a flat three-layer space frame that increases out-of-plane stiffness and member stability. Three shield configurations were generated using formex-based topology processing and analyzed in Abaqus/Explicit under a standardized 2000 kg TNT-equivalent airblast at an 8.0 m stand-off distance scaled distance  = 0.63 m/kg1/3. Relative to the flat double-layer baseline, the arched shield reduced internal strain energy by approximately 25% (from 7215 to 5400 kJ), peak transmitted base shear by approximately 23% (from 1100 to 850 kN), and maximum central displacement by approximately 30% (from 2.33 to 1.62 m). The three-layer configuration provided the greatest deformation control, reducing the maximum central displacement by approximately 51% to 1.15 m, while its additional structural depth improved member-stability potential. The three-layer configuration limited the maximum central displacement to 1.15 m compared with 2.33 m for the baseline and reduced the characteristic unbraced length of the internal diagonal members, thereby improving their member-stability potential. The results indicate that curvature is effective when weight and force transmission govern design, whereas the three-layer topology is preferable when displacement and local stability are controlling criteria. These findings are specific to the modeled geometry, material assumptions, and blast scenario and should be validated experimentally before design application. These results demonstrate a criterion-dependent trade-off: the arched configuration is advantageous when reduced structural demand and support-force transmission are prioritized, whereas the three-layer configuration is preferable when deformation control and member stability govern. The findings are scenario-specific and should be interpreted within the limitations of the adopted CONWEP-based numerical framework.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

  1. Imran, M., Liew, M. S., Nasif, M. S., Niazi, U. M., Yasreen, A. Hazard assessment studies on hydrocarbon fire and blast: An overview. Advanced Science Letters, 2017; 23: 1243–1247. doi:10.1166/asl.2017.8349.
  2. Rahman, S. A., Syed, Z. I., Kurian, J. V., Liew, M. S. Structural Response of Offshore Blast Walls under Accidental Explosion. Advanced Materials Research, 2014; 1043: 278–282. doi:10.4028/www.scientific.net/AMR.1043.278.
  3. Hasan, S. D., Islam, N., Moin, K. A review of fixed offshore platforms under earthquake forces. Structural Engineering and Mechanics, 2010; 35: 479–491. doi:10.12989/sem.2010.35.4.479.
  4. Wang, H. Design of Mooring System. In: W. Cui, S. Fu, Z. Hu, editors. Encyclopedia of Ocean Engineering. Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore; 2022. p. 314–319. doi:10.1007/978-981-10-6946-8_147.
  5. Aeran, A. Life Extension of Offshore Structures: A Conceptual Framework and Fatigue Damage Models [PhD Thesis]. Stavanger (NO):  University of Stavanger; 2019.
  6. Brkić, D., Praks, P. Safe, Secure and Sustainable Oil and Gas Drilling, Exploitation and Pipeline Transport Offshore. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2021; 9: 404. doi:10.3390/jmse9040404.
  7. Sohn, J. M., Kim, S. J., Seo, J. K., Kim, B. J., Paik, J. K. Strength assessment of stiffened blast walls in offshore installations under explosions. Ships and Offshore Structures, 2016; 11: 551–560. doi:10.1080/17445302.2015.1035164.
  8. Shi, J., Zhu, Y., Chen, G., Zhang, R., Guo, Z. Assessment on blast loading resistance capacity of corrugations on offshore cabins based on the P–I model. Process Safety and Environmental Protection, 2017; 105: 237–249. doi:10.1016/j.psep.2016.11.009.
  9. Jia, J., Paik, J. K. Engineering Dynamics and Vibrations. 1st ed. Boca Raton (FL): CRC Press; 2018. doi:doi.org/10.1201/9781315119908.
  10. Abdul Rahim, M. N. B. Vulnerability Assessment of Blast Walls of Offshore Structures Under Accidental Explosion [Bachelor's Thesis]. Seri Iskandar (MY): Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS; 2013.
  11. Kang, K.-Y., Heo, Y., Rogstadkjernet, L., Choi, K.-H., Lee, J.-M. Structural Response of Blast Wall to Gas Explosion on Semi-Confined Offshore Plant Topside. International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics, 2016; 17: 1750021. doi:10.1142/S0219455417500213.
  12. Luo, F., Zhang, S. Research on fracture mechanism of blast wall on offshore platform under impulse loading. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2020; 569: 012009. doi:10.1088/1755-1315/569/1/012009.
  13. Kim, S., Sohn, J., Paik, J. An advanced procedure for the quantitative risk assessment of offshore installations in explosions. Transactions of the Royal Institution of Naval Architects Part A: International Journal of Maritime Engineering, 2017; 159: 123–138. doi:10.3940/rina.ijme.2017.a2.394.
  14. Kim, D. K., Ng, W. C. K., Hwang, O. J., Sohnd, J. M., Lee, E. B. Recommended Finite Element Formulations for the Analysis of Offshore Blast Walls in an Explosion. Latin American Journal of Solids and Structures, 2018; 15: e115. doi:10.1590/1679-78255172.
  15. Syed, Z. I., Mohamed, O. A., Rahman, S. A. Non-linear Finite Element Analysis of Offshore Stainless Steel Blast Wall under High Impulsive Pressure Loads. Procedia Engineering, 2016; 145: 1275–1282. doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2016.04.164.
  16. Luo, F., Yang, D. Q., Zhang, S. L. Residual Anti-Explosion Performance of The Corrugated Blast Wall For Offshore Platforms after Explosion. IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2020; 510: 052082. doi:10.1088/1755-1315/510/5/052082.
  17. Jung, B., Kim, J. H., Seo, J. K. Investigation of the Structural Strength of Existing Blast Walls in Well-Test Areas on Drillships. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2020; 8: 583. doi:10.3390/jmse8080583.
  18. Francis, M. G., Mathews, M. V. Non-Linear Dynamic Analysis of Offshore Blast Wall. International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), 2017; 4: 2672–2675.
  19. Kang, K.-Y., Choi, K.-H., Choi, J., Ryu, Y., Lee, J.-M. Dynamic response of structural models according to characteristics of gas explosion on topside platform. Ocean Engineering, 2016; 113: 174–190. doi:10.1016/j.oceaneng.2015.12.043.
  20. Heo, Y. Structural Response of Offshore Plants to Risk-Based Blast Load. Architectural Research, 2013; 15: 151–158. doi:10.5659/AIKAR.2013.15.3.151.
  21. Luo, F., Zhang, S., Yang, D. Anti-Explosion Performance of Composite Blast Wall with an Auxetic Re-Entrant Honeycomb Core for Offshore Platforms. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2020; 8: 182. doi:10.3390/jmse8030182.
  22. Lin, H., Han, C., Yang, L., Zhang, L., Luan, H., Han, P., Xu, H., Zhang, S. Numerical Investigation on Performance Optimization of Offshore Sandwich Blast Walls with Different Honeycomb Cores Subjected to Blast Loading. Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2022; 10: 1743. doi:10.3390/jmse10111743.
  23. Qamar, S. Z. Extrusion Processing of Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene. In: H. Zhang, Y. Liang, editors. Extrusion of Metals, Polymers and Food Products. London: IntechOpen; 2018. p. 165–179. doi:10.5772/itechopen.72212.
  24. Voorde, J. V., Van den Abeele, F., Cooreman, S. Optimization of the Structural Performance for Corrugated Blast Panels on Offshore Platforms. In: Proceedings of the ASME 2018 37th International Conference on Ocean, Offshore and Arctic Engineering; 2018 Jun 17–22; Madrid, Spain. p. 1–11. doi:10.1115/OMAE2018-78296.
  25. Zhang, B., Feng, S. A Numerical Study of Blast Resistance of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Aluminum Alloy Laminates. Applied Sciences, 2023; 13: 4906. doi:10.3390/app13084906.
  26. Sawant, R., Patel, M., Patel, S. Numerical analysis of honeycomb sandwich panels under blast load. Materials Today: Proceedings, 2023; 87: 67–73. doi:10.1016/j.matpr.2022.09.547.
  27. Zhang, J., Zhu, X., Yang, X., Zhang, W. Transient nonlinear responses of an auxetic honeycomb sandwich plate under impact loads. International Journal of Impact Engineering, 2019; 134: 103383. doi:10.1016/j.ijimpeng.2019.103383.
  28. Yang Deqing, Z. X. W. U. B. The Influence Factors of Explosion and Shock Resistance Performance of Auxetic Sandwich Defensive Structures. Journal of Shanghai Jiaotong University, 2018; 52: 379–387.
  29. Imbalzano, G., Linforth, S., Ngo, T. D., Lee, P. V. S., Tran, P. Blast resistance of auxetic and honeycomb sandwich panels: Comparisons and parametric designs. Composite Structures, 2018; 183: 242–261. doi:10.1016/j.compstruct.2017.03.018.
  30. Kim, D. K., Looi, C. K., Topa, A., Cho, N. K. Prediction of mechanical response of hexagonal honeycomb SPS blast wall under explosive loading: In-depth review and empirical formula. Ocean Engineering, 2024; 293: 116578. doi:10.1016/j.oceaneng.2023.116578.
  31. Deputy of Planning and Strategic Supervision of the President. Regulation No. 400: Iranian Code of Practice for Design and Analysis of Space Structures. Tehran (IR): Deputy of Planning and Strategic Supervision of the President; 2010 (In Persian).
  32. Hosseinlou, F., Asaad Ibrahim, W., LabibZadeh, M. Investigating the Behavior of Jacket Offshore Steel Structure under Blast Loading. Journal of Hydraulic Structures, 2025; 11: 61–86. doi:10.22055/jhs.2024.47416.1310.
  33. Tajari, M., Azarsina, F., Ashrafi Khorasani, N. Nonlinear Statics Analysis of on Offshore Jacket Platform in the Case of Explosion. International Journal of Marine Science and Engineering, 2013; 3: 33–42.
  34. Sari, A., Ghoneim, A., Ayhan, Y. Design and Assessment of Offshore Structures for Extreme and Abnormal Accidental Loading. In: Offshore Technology Conference; 2013 May 6–9; Houston, Texas. p. OTC–24084–MS. doi:10.4043/24084-MS.
  35. Xie, J. Finite Element Analysis for Structural Performance of Offshore Platforms. In: 2012 SIMULIA Customer Conference; 2012 May 15–17; Edmonton, Canada. p. 1–12.
  36. HassanKhani, N., Emamzadeh, S. S. The effects of underwater explosion on the fixed base offshore platform at 10 metres distance. Specialty Journal of Engineering and Applied Science, 2017; 2: 11–18.
  37. Emamzadeh, S. S. Nonlinear Dynamic Response of a Fixed Offshore Platform Subjected to Underwater Explosion at Different Distances. Journal of Marine Science and Application, 2022; 21: 168–176. doi:10.1007/s11804-022-00306-6.
  38. Ryu, Y., Burgan, B., Choi, J., Lee, H. Structural Safety Analyses for Offshore Platforms Under Explosion Loadings. Journal of Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering, 2019; 141: doi:10.1115/1.4041718.
  39. Li, J., Ma, G., Hao, H., Huang, Y. Optimal blast wall layout design to mitigate gas dispersion and explosion on a cylindrical FLNG platform. Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 2017; 49: 481–492. doi:10.1016/j.jlp.2017.05.025.
  40. Li, J. Explosion safety evaluation for congested offshore platforms based on CFD simulations [PhD Thesis]. Perth (AU): The University of Western Australia; 2015.
  41. Liao, J. A novel offshore platform blast wall design with energy absorption mechanism [PhD Thesis]. Perth (AU): The University of Western Australia; 2017.
  42. Dusenberry, D. O. Handbook for blast resistant design of buildings. 1st ed. Hoboken (NJ): John Wiley & Sons, Inc.; 2009.
  43. Xu, Y., Bai, Y., Paik, J. K., Dai, W. An improved method for quantitative risk assessment of unconfined offshore installations subjected to gas explosions. Structures, 2020; 25: 566–577. doi:10.1016/j.istruc.2020.03.019.
  44. Liu, C.-M., Kong, Q., Wang, S.-P., Liang, Y.-H. Numerical study on the temporal and spatial distribution law of natural gas explosion load on an ultra-deepwater semi-submersible drilling platform. Ocean Engineering, 2022; 250: 110965. doi:10.1016/j.oceaneng.2022.110965.
  45. Hansen, O. R., Kjellander, M. T., Pappas, J. A. Explosion loading on equipment from CFD simulations. Journal of Loss Prevention in the Process Industries, 2016; 44: 601–613. doi:10.1016/j.jlp.2016.06.001.
  46. Jin, Y., Jang, B.-S. CFD Based Explosion Risk Analysis Using Multi-Dimensional Frequency Distribution of Flammable Gas Clouds. WIT Transactions on The Built Environment, 2018; 174: 3–12. doi:10.2495/SAFE170011.
  47. Nassr Amr, A., Razaqpur, A. G., Tait Michael, J., Campidelli, M., Foo, S. Dynamic Response of Steel Columns Subjected to Blast Loading. Journal of Structural Engineering, 2014; 140: 04014036. doi:10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0000920.
  48. Task Committee on Blast-Resistant Design. Design of Blast-Resistant Buildings in Petrochemical Facilities. 3rd ed. Reston (VA): ASCE Press; 2025. doi:10.1061/9780784485897.
  49. Kim, S. J., Sohn, J. M. Development of design formulas for predicting deflection in corrugated blast walls under explosion loads. Structures, 2024; 70: 107698. doi:10.1016/j.istruc.2024.107698.
  50. Li, X., Wang, Z., Zhang, R., Han, Z., Liu, X., Chen, G. Quantitative damage assessment of offshore platform exposed to flammable gas explosion accident. Ocean Engineering, 2025; 332: 121396. doi:10.1016/j.oceaneng.2025.121396.
  51. Lee, H., Seo, J. Dynamic Structural Response of a Corrugated Blast Wall Under Hydrogen Blast Loads. Applied Sciences, 2025; 15: 8237. doi:10.3390/app15158237.
  52. Dassault Systèmes Simulia Corp. Abaqus/Explicit. Version 2020. Providence (RI): Dassault Systèmes Simulia Corp.; 2020.
  53. Malciu, A., Noja, G.-F., Puică, C.-C. Numerical Modeling and Simulation-Based Assessment of Underwater Explosion Effects Near an Offshore Oil and Gas Extraction Platform. International conference KNOWLEDGE-BASED ORGANIZATION, 2025; 31: 77–84. doi:10.2478/kbo-2025-0082.
  54. Liu, Z., Tobias Gudmestad, O., Igland, R. Numerical Simulation of a Subsea Pipeline Subjected to Underwater Explosion Loads With the Coupled Eulerian–Lagrangian Method. Journal of Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering, 2022; 144: doi:10.1115/1.4054830.
  55. Mannacio, F. The effect of underwater explosion on a mine countermeasures vessel: structural response and material design [PhD Thesis]. Genoa (IT): University of Genoa; 2023.
  56. Henchie, T. F., Chung Kim Yuen, S., Nurick, G. N., Ranwaha, N., Balden, V. H. The response of circular plates to repeated uniform blast loads: An experimental and numerical study. International Journal of Impact Engineering, 2014; 74: 36–45. doi:10.1016/j.ijimpeng.2014.02.021.

Files

History

  • Receive Date: 19 July 2026
  • Revise Date: 11 August 2026
  • Accept Date: 21 September 2026
  • First Publish Date: 21 September 2026

Share

How to cite

Statistics