Experimental and numerical research on multi-mode energy concentrating damage to ship cabin

To enhance the damage effectiveness against ship structures, shaped charges are commonly employed in engineering practice to inflict damage on target structures. This paper investigates the damage characteristics of ship structures under the action of cylindrical shaped charges and linear shaped charges. First, underwater experiments are conducted on stiffened plate structures under the action of the two types of shaped charges. Second, to capture the dynamic physical processes that cannot be observed in the experiments, a finite element numerical model based on the Arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian (ALE) method is established according to the experimental results, which is used to systematically analyze the key mechanical properties of shaped charge penetrators such as morphology and velocity, as well as the multi-mode damage laws of the structures. Subsequently, the numerical simulation results are compared with the experimental data, with all errors being <15%. Finally, numerical models of near-surface ship cabins under the action of blasting charges, cylindrical shaped charges and linear shaped charges are established. The damage characteristics of the cabins are comparatively analyzed, and the influence laws of charge structure and penetration position on the damage effect are revealed. The results show that linear shaped charges exhibit super-caliber penetration capability, with the breach area they create on ship cabins being 53.2% to 72.9% larger than that by cylindrical shaped charges, while cylindrical shaped charges induce more significant deformation of the structures. When the charge acts on the central position of the stiffened plate grid, the deformation of the cabin sidewalls is minimized, yielding the optimal anti-blast protection effect.