ARL-TN-0714 ● NOV 2015

US Army Research Laboratory

Experimental Setup to Assess Blast and 

Penetration-Induced Secondary Debris in a 

Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) 

Environment

by Paul S Duvall

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
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ARL-TN-0714 ● NOV 2015

US Army Research Laboratory

Experimental Setup to Assess Blast and 

Penetration-Induced Secondary Debris in a 

Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) 

Environment

by Paul S Duvall

Weapons and Materials Research Directorate, ARL

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.
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1. REPORT DATE (DD-MM-YYYY)

November 2015

2. REPORT TYPE

Technical Note

3. DATES COVERED (From - To)

1 April—30 April 2015

4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE

Experimental Setup to Assess Blast and Penetration-Induced Secondary Debris 

in a Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) Environment

5a. CONTRACT NUMBER

5b. GRANT NUMBER

5c. PROGRAM ELEMENT NUMBER

6. AUTHOR(S)

Paul S Duvall

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US Army Research Laboratory

ATTN: RDRL-WMP-G

Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD 21005

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ARL-TN-0714

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12. DISTRIBUTION/AVAILABILITY STATEMENT

Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited.

13. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES

14. ABSTRACT

The purpose of this report is to document the procedures for setting up collection medium in an urban environment to collect 

secondary debris caused by an explosion. The collection medium allows us to evaluate the possible penetration depths of 

secondary debris into the Warfighter and assess different types of clothing and protective equipment.

15. SUBJECT TERMS

collection medium, secondary debris, synthetic gelatin, MOUT, collection packs

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 ABSTRACT

UU

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Paul S Duvall

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Unclassified

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410-278-6768

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iii

Contents

List of Figures iv

Acknowledgments v

1. Introduction 1

2. Experimental Setup 2

2.1 Collection Medium 2

2.2 Explosive Blast Experiments 5

3. Conclusion 8

Distribution List 9
iv

List of Figures

Fig. 1 Experimental rooms...............................................................................1

Fig. 2 Collection stand .....................................................................................2

Fig. 3 Foam packs ............................................................................................3

Fig. 4 Collection pack with gelatin soap and synthetic gelatin........................4

Fig. 5 Gelatin soap ...........................................................................................4

Fig. 6 Collection medium.................................................................................5

Fig. 7 Double thick brick wall..........................................................................5

Fig. 8 Test configuration ..................................................................................6

Fig. 9 Collection stand .....................................................................................7
v

Acknowledgments

The author would like to acknowledge the following people for their support in 

performing test configuration setup and the collection process: Rachel Ehlers, Tim 

Farrand, and Jeff Welch. Also, appreciation goes out to Randy Mrozek and Eric 

Wetzel for providing synthetic gelatin blocks and fabric material and to Patrick 

Gillich for providing the foam pack configuration.
vi

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1

1. Introduction

As part of an ongoing Project Agreement on Military Operations in Urban Terrain

(MOUT), the US Army Research Laboratory’s (ARL’s) Explosives Effects Branch 

supported a series of experiments conducted in Meppen, Germany (DEU), to 

understand loading on personnel protective equipment (PPE) produced during 

urban weapon attacks. These experiments were conducted by detonating an 

explosive charge placed on a brick wall to create secondary debris that would 

impact the US-designed collection medium. The collection packs that were utilized 

have previously been used in experiments where it was necessary to collect 

secondary sand debris from buried blast experiments. Because the collection 

methodology was considered successful for the fine grain sand used in those 

experiments, the same design was adapted for collecting wall debris. Participating 

countries in the experimental series included DEU, the Netherlands (NLD), and the 

United States (ARL and the Air Force Research Laboratory). Each participating 

country designed a collection medium to understand the effects of failing walls in 

an urban environment on PPE material and clothing and on associated personnel 

injury. The experimental area consisted of 3 separate rooms (Fig. 1). The first room 

was used as the blast room. The second and third rooms contained the collection 

medium. A double thick brick wall separated rooms 1 and 2 and was used to create 

the secondary debris.

Fig. 1 Experimental rooms
2

2. Experimental Setup

2.1 Collection Medium

A wooden collection stand (Fig. 2) was designed to hold each collection medium 

that the US provided for testing. Each stand was precut out of 1.90-cm-thick 

plywood and assembled on-site. The overall measurements were 172 cm high × 

54.61 cm wide. The front window frame was 59.69 cm high × 54.61 cm wide with 

an opening 50 cm high × 45 cm wide. The stand was configured to be generally 

representative of a Warfighter that is 187.96 cm tall (95th percentile 

Anthropometric Survey [ANSUR] II study) with a presented chest area of 50.8 cm 

high × 45.72 cm wide. When placed in the stand, the center of the collection pack 

was 142 cm high (Fig. 2). The stand was fabricated to contain a collection pack 

consisting of neoprene foam and plastic (50.8 cm wide × 55.88 cm high × 5.75 cm 

deep). Each collection pack was 5 layers of neoprene foam (11.43 mm) with 0.002 

inches (0.05 mm) of plastic interweaved between each layer (Fig. 3). The front of 

the pack utilized 2 layers of plastic. 

Fig. 2 Collection stand
3

Fig. 3 Foam packs

In addition to the foam collection pack, the wooden stand was designed to hold 2 

synthetic gelatin blocks or a combination of gelatin soap and synthetic gelatin for 

use as the collection medium (Fig. 4). Shelves were constructed to support the 

synthetic gelatin and gelatin soap with dimensions of 25.4 cm wide × 25.4 cm deep. 

Each shelf was attached to the side of the stand so that the distance from the ground 

to the center of the collection medium was 142 cm. The synthetic gelatin is designed 

to have the penetration resistance of 20% that of ballistic gelatin. The benefit of

using the synthetic gelatin is that it is not temperature sensitive in contrast to the 

20% ballistic gel. Due to its temperature insensitivity and results of comparative 

studies, the synthetic gelatin was chosen for shipment from the United States to 

GEU. The presented area of the gelatin blocks was 20.32 × 20.32 cm. The gelatin 

soap blocks were provided by the German participants in the experiments and a 

representative sample is shown in Fig. 5.
4

Fig. 4 Collection pack with gelatin soap and synthetic gelatin

Fig. 5 Gelatin soap
5

Each foam pack was covered with different types of clothing material provided by 

the participating countries (Fig. 6). Figure 6 shows 2 types of NLD fabric covering 

the foam pack. The synthetic gelatin was covered with 2 types of US Kevlar weave

cloth.

Fig. 6 Collection medium

2.2 Explosive Blast Experiments

A double thick brick wall was constructed to separate the blast room from the target 

room (Fig. 7).

Fig. 7 Double thick brick wall
6

Two explosive charges were placed on the wall, on the side of room 1,142 cm off 

the ground with a spacing of 49.5 cm from the center point of the wall to create the 

secondary debris. Three collection stands were used for the blast test (Fig. 8).

Fig. 8 Test configuration
7

The first stand was located 175 cm from the brick wall in room 2. The foam pack 

was covered with an NLD fabric. Half of the pack was also covered with NLD 

undergarment material under the first layer of fabric (Fig. 9). The soap block and 

gelatin block of the first stand were covered with a DEU pug material.

Fig. 9 Collection stand

The second stand was located 328 cm from the brick wall (Fig. 8). The foam was 

covered half with NLD fabric and half with defender undergarment. The 2 side 

targets on this stand were synthetic gel blocks covered with a single US weave 

material of various thicknesses (Fig. 6).

The third stand was located 476.7 cm from the brick wall (Fig. 8) just behind the 

doorway of room 3. Half of the foam pack was covered with NLD fabric and the 

other half was bare. Both the gelatin and soap were bare.

High-speed videography was used to obtain measurements of wall debris velocity 

and document wall debris spray. 
8

3. Conclusion

Through these experiments, the collection medium design proved to be a valuable 

way to understand the impact from secondary debris. The stands provided a simple,

yet effective way of containing each collection medium. 
9

1 DEFENSE TECHNICAL

(PDF) INFORMATION CTR

DTIC OCA

2 DIRECTOR

(PDF) US ARMY RESEARCH LAB

RDRL CIO LL

IMAL HRA MAIL & RECORDS

MGMT

1 GOVT PRINTG OFC

(PDF) A MALHOTRA

14 DIRECTOR

(PDF) US ARMY RESEARCH LAB

RDRL WMP A

S BILYK

RDRL WMP C

T BJERKE

RDRL WMP G

N ELDREDGE

S KUKUCK 

C PECORA

B HOMAN

J STEWART

R EHLERS

P DUVALL

RDRL WMP F

N GNIAZDOWSKI

RDRL WMP B

C HOPPEL

RDRL WMP D

J RUNYEON

RDRL WMP E

P SWOBODA

RDRL SLB W

P GILLICH
10

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