Theses and Dissertations Collection

The primary objective of this study is to find effective ways of retrofitting unreinforced concrete masonry units (CMU) walls to survive against harmful blast loading effects. The retrofit investigation considered the use of carbon fiber reinforced polymers (CFRP), Kevlar, aluminum, and steel applied to CMU and exposed to a 100-kg ANFO charge at a 15-meter standoff distance. For the experimentation, Ansys Workbench and Ansys Autodyn (finite element software) were used to model a control CMU wall and compare model simulations with the retrofit materials at varying thicknesses. The control CMU wall measured 1000 millimeters long, 2200 millimeters tall, and 200 millimeters thick. Each material was added to the control wall in 3.175-mm increments starting with 3.175 millimeters and ending with 19.05 millimeters.The study concluded that each material made a significant contribution to decreasing the wall’s overall deflection values when compared to the control. After the data collection process, a discussion was held to compare the overall percent improvement, material weight, material costs, workability, and constructability for each material selection. With all factors considered, the discussion concluded that the use of a fiber reinforced polymer would be the best retrofit option. Keywords: Unreinforced masonry, blast loading, finite element, carbon fiber reinforced polymer, Kevlar, aluminum, steel