Numerical study of horizontal liquid tank under impact of explosion fragment based on coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian method

Abstract

Explosion fragments are one of the crucial factors leading to catastrophic domino effects. This paper reveals the dynamic response and failure behavior of horizontal liquid tanks caused by explosion fragments. According to material tests, the strain hardening and the strain rate hardening models are modified based on the standard Johnson-Cook (J-C) model, and a damage scalar representing the damage evolution is defined. Subsequently, the fluid-structure interaction model of the horizontal liquid tank under the impact of the explosion fragment is established based on the coupled Eulerian-Lagrangian (CEL) method to describe the dynamic behavior of the tank with gasoline. The state of the fluid is captured, and the role of the fluid in influencing the deformation and fracture of the tank wall is quantized. The results show that the modified material model can appropriately describe the failure process of the tank. In addition, the deformation displacement of liquid tanks and impact force of fragments at different impact velocities are discussed, and the effect of liquid filling degree on tank failures is revealed. The proposed numerical method and findings can guide the safety assessment of tanks.