Monash unveils impact testing facility to improve infrastructure safety

Monash University and research collaborators have launched the National Drop Weight Impact Testing (NDWITF) Facility in Melbourne designed to help boost the structural safety of present and future infrastructure in Australia and save lives.

The facility will have world-leading technology that can observe the behaviour of elements under severe impact loading of up to two tonnes. It will be used to assess the safety of high-risk infrastructure across Australia, including railway networks, tunnels and bridges, buildings and construction materials, as well as road safety barriers and protective equipment.

The NDWITF will also support research in the broader community on construction, mining, geo-mechanics, energy and the environment. Fields of application and interest include construction materials under high strain loading, structural dynamics and engineering, mining excavation and rock fragmentation.

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The facility is funded by an Australian Research Council (ARC) LIEF grant and is a Monash University-led collaboration involving six other universities, including the University of New South Wales, Swinburne University of Technology, Queensland University of Technology, University of Wollongong, University of Technology, Sydney and The University of Melbourne.

The NDWITF, located at Monash University’s Department of Civil Engineering, is accessible to all researchers, students and industry.

Head of Structural Engineering at Monash University, Associate Professor Amin Heidarpour, led this project supported by some of Australia’s leading experts in this space.

“Understanding the behaviour of construction and geo-materials under dynamic loading is essential in dealing with various engineering problems, such as protective structures design and impact cratering, excavation and mining, blasting and fragmentation, and risk management,” he said.

“A state-of-the-art impact engineering facility provides a national research focus on behaviour of construction materials and systems under impact loading with unique observation techniques. The facility will advance understanding of the fundamental behaviour of critical infrastructure exposed to impact loading and will foster innovations in design and construction.

“This will ensure Australia is at the forefront of impact engineering research in the international arena, promoting local innovation and industrial competitiveness contributing to the safeguarding of Australia, saving lives and reducing losses.”

The catastrophic failure of construction materials caused by extreme impact conditions, such as natural disasters and man-made hazards, has justified the need to carry out comprehensive research in order to develop future infrastructure with new, innovative, cost-effective and environmentally friendly materials, Monash added.

The NDWITF features a 2000kg impact mass that has the capacity to create an impact energy of up to 200,000J and impact velocity of up to 18m/s. Impact loading can be applied to specimens with a width of up to 1m and length of up to 2m. All displacements recorded within each test is captured by an optical 3D photogrammetry system.

Geelong-based engineering company, Austeng, was a key partner in this project which engineered, manufactured, and installed the facility in line with the University’s requirements.

“Austeng was proud to be part of this important project and collaborate with Monash University and I am delighted our team was able to deliver a practical and workable solution given the stringent performance parameters set by Monash and the significant engineering challenges involved,” said Austeng Managing Director, Ross George.