Experimental investigation on the dynamic response of scaled ship model with rubber sandwich coatings subjected to underwater explosion

How to moderate ship the damages caused by the underwater explosions is of great interest to the modern ship designers. This investigation explores the protective effects of a layer of rubber sandwich with the square honeycomb core coated onto ship hull. Two slender steel scaled ship models were manufactured and tested. One model was coated with a layer of rubber coating while the other kept intact. A series of comparative tests were carried out to comprehend the dynamic performance of the protective layer when both shock wave and bubble pulse loading were considered. Modal characteristics of both models were measured firstly and then live UNDEX tests were made on the free floating ship models. The acceleration and strain peaks were selected as the major comparative criterions. The free field and wall pressure were also monitored. Detailed discussions on test results show that the protective rubber layer is capable of moderating damage of the ship body caused by shock wave while not very effective in reducing the whipping damage excited by bubble pulse.