Author(s)

C.-C. Liang & W.-M. Tseng

Abstract

The U.S. Naval Surface Warfare Center Dahlgren Division (NSWCDD) is developing the technology for a concept that has the potential to be very effective in defending Navy platforms against high speed, sea-skimming Anti- Ship Cruise Missiles (ASCMs). This concept uses a new kill mechanism, which is a wall of water to provide a low cost terminal defense system for Navy ships. This wall of water, or water barrier, is formed from the shallow detonation of multiple underwater explosive charges. To support the development and evaluation of the Water Barrier Concept, underwater detonation tests of scaled line charges were conducted by NSWCDD in July 1995 to determine the amount of water ejected into the air by subsurface detonation of continuous and discrete line charges. Above-the-surface plumes were generated by an underwater detonation of composite C-4 demolition blocks configured into continuous line charges, which were 30 to 56 feet in length. Sequential underwater detonation of discrete line changes consisted of five to eight 10-pound charges each separated by 8 feet and fabricated from C-4 demolition blocks. This paper presents the validation of the mathematic model and computational code for predicting shallow depth explosion plume behavior and compares it with NSWCCD underwater detonation tests. The model is based on a generalized formulation of hydrodynamics and uses an ‘incompressible liquid’ assumption. The quantitative measurements of plume heights, diameters and plume profiles are compared with the computational data using two-dimensional and three-dimensional discrete line charge models. The plume profiles are studied in detail. Keywords: underwater explosion, water barrier, plume, line charge.

Keywords

underwater explosion, water barrier, plume, line charge.