Sensitivity of SDOF steel-plate response to equivalent pressure-time histories for vented deflagration loads

This paper investigates how the assumed pressure-time shape for vented dust deflagrations affects the predicted dynamic response of thin steel plates using a bilinear SDOF model with Cowper-Symonds strain-rate effects. Five peak/impulse-matched, peak-aligned equivalent load laws triangular, right-triangle, reversed Friedlander, double reversed Friedlander, and a hybrid ramp and tail are compared against a CFD-validated reference trace. Results quantify sensitivity of mid-span deflection and peak demand to rise/decay assumptions, identifying when impulse matching is sufficient and when rise time and post-peak tail must be modeled explicitly.