SUSI 2025
17th International Conference on Structures under Shock and Impact
9-11 June 2025
Edinburgh, UK
Overview
The 17th International Conference on Structures under Shock and Impact (SUSI) that took place in Edinburgh, UK, was organised by the Wessex Institute, represented by its Academic Director Dr Stavros Syngellakis, and the University of Edinburgh, UK, represented by Professor Filipe Teixeira-Dias. The meeting was sponsored by WIT Transactions on the Built Environment.
The conference was part of a well-established series, starting in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1989 and continuing in a number of locations throughout Europe, the previous meeting, in 2020, having taken place on-line, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The series originated with Professor Norman Jones from Liverpool University, the foremost authority on Impact Mechanics.
Opening of the Conference
The conference was opened by Stavros who referred to the importance of the conference series towards fulfilling the objective of the Institute, that is, the transfer of knowledge. He also mentioned that WIT has a series of other activities towards this end, including research and development in its field of expertise, that is, the simulation of engineering and scientific problems using advanced computational methods. WIT is known around the world as the originator of the Boundary Element Method (BEM), a technique that it has been applied to solve a wide variety of problems. Stavros emphasised in his opening address the groundbreaking role of the Institute’s founder, the late Prof Carlos Brebbia, in the establishment and development of BEM. During his talk, Stavros highlighted some case studies relating to optimal design of corrosion protection systems and assessment of structural integrity against fracture. Further development of WIT’s unique computational tools is continuously required due to the demands of industry, which supports many of these activities.
The work presented at WIT conferences is widely distributed through its publication by WIT Press, the publishing arm of the Institute, in the WIT Transactions, which are archived in Open Access format in the eLibrary of the Wessex Institute of Technology (www.witpress.com/elibrary).
In his opening remarks, Professor Filipe Teixeira-Dias, also welcomed the delegates and emphasised the importance of the conference.
SUSI has always provided opportunities for friendly exchange of ideas and collaboration. It continues to attract a good number of younger researchers and PhD candidates who value the opportunity to present their work in a supportive, encouraging environment. We trust this continues into the future for the benefit of the community and the subject.
The presentations covered a variety of topics relevant to anyone interested in impact and blast effects on structural integrity. These are areas of active research among academics as well as practitioners in civil, mechanical, nuclear, transportation, petrochemical and process industries, focused on the survivability of physical facilities, structures and the protection of people.
Particular attention was given to the assessment and modelling of propagating shock waves due to blast loading of various origins. The capacity of structures to absorb energy, protection against explosions in the built environment, as well as the dynamic behaviour of materials under shock and impact were among the topics explored at the meeting. Such investigations rely on small- and large-scale experiments or advanced computer codes. Special cases considered include: the deformation of buried pipelines due to subsoil detonation; the mitigation of naval equipment vibrations through resilient mounting systems; the rapid prediction of interaction between blast waves and the built environment; and the damage of steel columns due to vehicle explosions.
Numerical assessments of advanced composite material systems, as well as concrete, demonstrated the capacity of these materials to resist ballistic impact. There was particular focus on the response of bi-layer ceramic/metal composite and wrought maraging steel targets.
The complexity of impact phenomena requires special rig designs for their experimental investigation. Two such examples were included among the presentations: the first combined impact with axial load and heat, the second used a compression-to-tension jig set for high strains assessment in a split Hopkinson pressure bar. Experimentation was combined with numerical modelling for bridge columns and polymeric gyroid triply periodic minimal surface structures.
Glass and gradient hexachiral auxetics were materials whose response was investigated under blast and impact load, respectively. Artificial neural networks were applied to yield design parameters from inverse analysis of blast-loaded structures.
Finally, several papers dealt with the mitigation of impact and blast effects; the effectiveness of composite shields and barriers were, respectively, investigated. Observation and shock wave tracking were proposed as means of enhancing critical infrastructure and transport security.
Thus, the conference comprised contributions essential to extending and deepening the knowledge of how to assess structural and material behaviour under various types of dynamic loads. It brought together the work of researchers and other professionals actively involved in developing more efficient and reliable analysis methods to simulate impact and blast events and their effects, as well as validating computer models using scaled and full-size experimental techniques.
Invited Speakers
The conference programme was also enhanced by a series of invited presentations:
- “The protective effectiveness of polymeric pre-layered steel targets under high-velocity ballistic – experiment and simulation”, by Dr Teresa Fras, French-German Research Institute of Saint-Louis (ISL), FRANCE
- “Deformation of buried pipelines by subsoil detonation”, by Bart Koene, Netherlands Defence Academy, NETHERLANDS
- “Functionally-Graded SSiC/AA6082/HDPE Composite Shields for MMOD Hypervelocity Impact Mitigation”, by Filipe Teixeira-Dias, The University of Edinburgh, UK
- “Field testing and numerical modelling of bridge column to contact explosion” by Hrvoje Draganic, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, CROATIA
Conference Publication
Papers presented at this conference will appear in Vol. 215 of the WIT Transactions on The Built Environment (ISSN 1743-3509). Papers presented at the meeting will be available Open Access in the eLibrary of the Wessex Institute (https://www.witpress.com/elibrary) from where they can be freely downloaded by any interested parties.
ISAC Meeting & Dinner
The International Scientific Advisory Committee (ISAC) met over dinner to discuss how the meeting could be improved in 2027. The dinner took place in at a Restaurant Petit Paris, offering French cuisine and an ideal atmosphere for the committee’s deliberations. Among the issues discussed were titles for sessions, WIT’s marketing strategy, attracting contributions from industry, promote the series through contacts. Several new topics were suggested as well as nominations of colleagues to join the Committee. There were also some proposals for suitable venues for the next meeting in two years time. These as well as other possibilities will be carefully examined by the Conference Organising Committee.
Conference Dinner
The conference dinner was held at "Cannonball Restaurant & Bar," a unique 17th-century, award-winning restaurant with spectacular views of Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile. The meal featured traditional Scottish dishes with a modern twist. The private room where the dinner took place reflected Scottish style and offered a unique space for the delegates to socialize and enjoy an excellent meal.
Excursion
The conference took place in the centre of Edinburgh, which was a convenient location for a walking tour of the city’s most iconic landmarks. The tour was led by two very experienced guides, both of whom have published books on the history of Edinburgh.
The delegates visited Edinburgh’s most famous landmark - Edinburgh Castle - dramatically perched atop Castle Rock, offering panoramic views of the city below. The tour then continued along the historic Royal Mile, where the group saw the site of the old Mercat Cross, historically used as the place for public executions and beheadings, a grim reminder of the city’s turbulent past.
Next, they visited Greyfriars Kirkyard, the renowned cemetery linked to the Harry Potter series. Visitors explored gravestones that inspired character names, including Thomas Riddell, believed to have influenced the name of Lord Voldemort. The tour also included a stop at the monument to the philosopher David Hume, whose legacy as a major figure of the Scottish Enlightenment continues to influence modern thought.
Closing of the Conference
The Conference was closed by Stavros who thanked the delegates on behalf of WIT for contributing to yet another successful conference. He looked forward to their participation at the next meeting, which will be reconvened in 2027 in a location and at a date to be announced shortly. In his final remarks, Stavros thanked the conference coordinator Marta Graczyk for all her hard work in the smooth running of the conference and the members of ISAC for their support. Both papers and presentations were of high quality and wide range that notably impressed the advisory committee and the participants equally.
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Wessex Institute