Propagation and Attenuation of Blast Waves in Tunnels with Roughened Wall Surfaces

Abstract

This study addresses the challenges of slow attenuation and significant hazards associated with explosive shock waves confined within conventional underground tunnel walls. A novel serrated passive shock-attenuating tunnel design is proposed, grounded in the principle of viscous dissipation within the boundary layer. The investigation encompasses both experimental analyses and numerical simulations. The study found that shock waves in smooth tunnels primarily propagate as one-dimensional plane waves, resulting in concentrated energy and gradual attenuation. Conversely, the serrated tunnel geometry generated a continuous reflection, scattered and vortex formation due to abrupt geometric discontinuities, led to distortion and fragmentation of the shock front and the emergence of a three-dimensional discrete pressure field. Through turbulent dissipation mechanisms, energy is rapidly transformed into small-scale vortices, effectively reducing wave velocity and markedly diminishing the forward peak pressure. Under conditions of high-equivalent explosions, the serrated structure demonstrates enhanced efficacy in energy dissipation and peak pressure attenuation, significantly curtailed the effective propagation distance of high-pressure shock waves. Optimization of the serration spacing identified 30 cm as the optimal interval, minimizing stress peaks both centrally and at the tunnel entrance, thereby maximizing wave attenuation. Comparative analysis between simulation and experimental was resulted that corroborates the wave-attenuation performance of the serrated design, offering a critical foundation for the development of blast-resistant underground structures.