Nonlinear Dynamic Analysis of Steel Plates Subjected to Explosive Loading: Comparison between Analytical and Finite Element Models

Abstract Explosions, such as the one in the port of Beirut (Lebanon), have become increasingly frequent in recent years, highlighting the need for more in‐depth studies on the dynamic behavior of structures subjected to blast loads. These analyses are particularly challenging due to the significant impact to which structures are exposed. In this context, DYNABlast 1.1 (2024) was developed as an analytical software to simulate the behavior of Kirchhoff plates under explosive loads, evaluating displacements, strains, stresses, and natural frequencies. The software uses the SDOF (Single Degree of Freedom) model, which, according to the US Department of Defense (2008), is viable for simplified structures made of materials with perfect plastic or elastic behavior. This is supported by the ASCE (2021), which states that most of the energy from an explosion is concentrated in the first fundamental mode of the structure. This study focuses on simply supported plates subjected to explosive loading, considering geometric nonlin‐earity and the immovable membrane effect. DYNABlast was calibrated by comparing its results with numerical simulations performed in the Finite Element software ABAQUS 6.14‐1, focusing on the positive, negative, and extended positive phases of the explosion. The results provided insight into how explosions affect these structures and validated the reliability of DYNABlast for such analyses.