Mitigation of Confined Explosion Effects by Placing Water in Proximity of Explosives

Water, placed in the near proximity of a confined explosion, can mitigate the gas pressure loading developed inside a structure confining an explosion. This phenomenon can be exploited in the design and operation of new and existing facilities exposed to a potential internal explosion. This water concept offers the potential for major savings in the cost for explosives safety of ordnance facilities from accidental explosions, for survivability of combat facilities from enemy weapons, and for physical security of sensitive facilities from terrorist bombings. This paper describes the mechanism by which water absorbs energy from a confined explosion and how this phenomenon reduces the gas pressure loading from a confined explosion presents test data demonstrating that water can indeed mitigate the gas pressure loading from a confined explosion describes how water could be exploited in the design of facilities impacted by confined explosions, and estimates the benefits derived from water, in terms of the reduction in land area encumbered by hazardous debris from unhardened ordnance facilitates, reduction in the cost of structures designed to fully or partially contain the effects from an internal explosion, and the increase in the safe explosive limit for existing ordnance facilities.