Design Procedure for Blast-Resistant Laminated Glass

When an explosive threat exists, building owners should strongly consider using blast-resistant glazing in windows and curtain walls. Architects and engineers have few, if any, publicly available tools, procedures, or formal guidelines to aid in designing blast-resistant glazing. This paper presents a design procedure for blast-resistant laminated glass. The procedure finds its basis in an empirical relationship between air blast pressure, positive phase impulse, and 60-second equivalent design loading for laminated glass and window glass constructions fabricated with laminated glass. The procedure is relatively simple to use. The paper also addresses framing considerations for the blast-resistant glazing. It gives a design example and shows comparisons with experimental results.