Research on the local effects of the detonation of improvised explosive devices on the steel building frames

Explosions may have severe consequences on the integrity of structural or nonstructural elements of a building. Being considered events with a low probability of occurrence, they are not considered directly in the design, except in certain special situations (accidental design situations). In the case of deliberate attacks, placing explosive devices at short distances or even attached to building elements can cause major local failures. Local failure and potential loss of load carrying capacity are dependent on local conditions in the structural elements (load and end support conditions, mechanical properties of material). The paper presents the results of recent research carried out on the response of steel building frames under blast loading. The data of the experimental testing, combined with the numerical modelling, allowed to investigate the local failure mechanism in the elements and the global response of the structure to the applied blast load.