Numerical investigation on performance of protective layer around large-scale chemical storage tank against impact by projectile

Abstract The protective layer of chemical storage tank has a significant effect in risk mitigation of projectile-related accidents but the research is still in infancy. In order to investigate the performance of protective layer against projectile, dynamic response process of the large-scale vertical storage tank impacted by the end-cap fragment is simulated based on the LS-DYNA. In this paper, some key factors (thickness, layering order and number of layers) affecting its performance are discussed, which can be characterized by the deformation degrees of the target tank. It is found that the anti-penetration performance is improved rapidly with the increase of thickness, and aluminum (Al) protective layer shows a higher sensitivity to thickness change compared to Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene (UHMWPE) protective layer. Three double-layered protective layers for different sequences are investigated and the Al-UHMWPE protective layer shows best performance. For the Al protective layers arranged in various combinations of equivalent total thickness, better performance is provided by monolithic structures than layered one. This study demonstrated the rational design of the protective layer around chemical storage tanks in material selection and structure configuration.