• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.83-101
• /
• 2005

This paper summarizes the application of a rational methodology for the structural assessment of older reinforced concrete Tunisian bridges. This methodology is based on ambient vibration measurement of the bridge, identification of the structure's modal signature and finite element model updating. The selected case study is the Boujnah bridge of the Tunis-Msaken Highway. This bridge is made of a continuous four-span simply supported reinforced concrete slab without girders resting on elastomeric bearings at each support. Ambient vibration tests were conducted on the bridge using a data acquisition system with nine force-balance accelerometers placed at selected locations of the bridge. The Enhanced Frequency Domain Decomposition technique was applied to extract the dynamic characteristics of the bridge. The finite element model was updated in order to obtain a reasonable correlation between experimental and numerical modal properties. For the model updating part of the study, the parameters selected for the updating process include the concrete modulus of elasticity, the elastic bearing stiffness and the foundation spring stiffnesses. The primary objective of the paper is to demonstrate the use of the Enhanced Frequency Domain Decomposition technique combined with model updating to provide data that could be used to assess the structural condition of the selected bridge. The application of the proposed methodology led to a relatively faithful linear elastic model of the bridge in its present condition.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.20 no.12
• /
• pp.15-20
• /
• 2019

This paper evaluated the construction costs of 11 design cases to decrease the horizontal forces applied to the abutment. They include two abutment types, which are to improve backfill materials for a reversed T-shaped abutment and geosynthetic Reinforced Abutment for Railways (RAR). The first type of economic analysis was that the internal friction angles of backfill materials were increased from Φ=35° to Φ=40° and 50° for a reversed T-shaped abutment. In addition, the second type was the cases with the design of geosynthetic RAR. When friction angles of 40° or 50° were applied through the improvement of the backfill material, the decrease in construction cost of the abutment was not large (2.0~3.9%), even though the horizontal forces applied to the abutment had decreased to 18~48%. In the case of applying the RAR, however, a maximum 30% cost reduction was evaluated by the decrease in horizontal force to "0" theoretically. The cost reduction resulted from the decrease in wall thickness, base slab size, and number and material change of pile foundation for the abutment.

• Advances in Computational Design
• /
• v.7 no.3
• /
• pp.229-251
• /
• 2022

In 2017, an intraplate earthquake of Mw 7.1 occurred 120 km from Mexico City (CDMX). Most collapsed structural buildings stroked by the earthquake were flat slab systems joined to reinforced concrete (RC) columns, unreinforced masonry, confined masonry, and dual systems. This article presents the simulated response of an actual six-story RC frame building with masonry infill walls that did not collapse during the 2017 earthquake. It has a structural system similar to that of many of the collapsed buildings and is located in a high seismic amplification zone. Five 3D numerical models were used in the study to model the seismic response of the building. The building dynamic properties were identified using an ambient vibration test (AVT), enabling validation of the building's finite element models. Several assumptions were made to calibrate the numerical model to the properties identified from the AVT, such as the presence of adjacent buildings, variations in masonry properties, soil-foundation-structure interaction, and the contribution of non-structural elements. The results showed that the infill masonry wall would act as a compression strut and crack along the transverse direction because the shear stresses in the original model (0.85 MPa) exceeded the shear strength (0.38 MPa). In compression, the strut presents lower stresses (3.42 MPa) well below its capacity (6.8 MPa). Although the non-structural elements were not considered to be part of the lateral resistant system, the results showed that these elements could contribute by resisting part of the base shear force, reaching a force of 82 kN.

• Journal of the Korea Institute of Building Construction
• /
• v.21 no.6
• /
• pp.563-571
• /
• 2021

Recently, due to the increase in high-rise apartment and residential-commercial complex buildings, a number of mega-class mass concrete members with a thickness of 3m or more have been designed. As the construction of mass concrete such as transfer beam and slab is increasing not only in foundation members but also in special structures, research on reducing temperature cracks in mass concrete is being conducted. To review temperature cracks in mass concrete, it is important to review the thermal properties of concrete, but it is difficult to use an adiabatic temperature rise tester in the field, so the semi-adiabatic temperature rise test is mainly used. In this study, to improve the accuracy of the results of concrete heat characteristics gained by the semi-adiabatic temperature rise test, various factors affecting heat loss compensation and methods were reviewed and presented.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
• /
• v.19 no.11
• /
• pp.31-37
• /
• 2018

Most of tall building systems are composed of above-ground structure and underground structure used for parking and stores. The underground structure may have a pronounced influence on tall building response, but its influence is still not well understood. In a widely referred report on seismic design of tall buildings, it is recommended to model the underground structure ignoring the surrounding ground and to impose input ground motion calculated considering the underground structure-soil kinematic interaction between at its base. In this study, dynamic analyses are performed on 1B and 5B basements. The motions at the base are calculated to free field responses. The motions are further compared to two procedures outlined in the report to account for the kinematic interaction. It is shown that one of the procedure fits well for the 1B model, whereas both procedures provide poor fit with 5B model analysis result.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
• /
• v.27 no.6
• /
• pp.152-161
• /
• 2023

In general, large-capacity hydrogen storage vessels, typically in the form of vertical cylindrical vessels, are constructed using steel materials. These vessels are anchored to foundation slabs that are specially designed to suit the environmental conditions. This anchoring method involves pre-installed anchors on top of the concrete foundation slab. However, it's important to note that such a design can result in concentrated stresses at the anchoring points when external forces, such as seismic events, are at play. This may lead to potential structural damage due to anchor and concrete damage. For this reason, in this study, it selected an vertical hydrogen storage vessel based on site observations and created a 3D finite element model. Artificial seismic motions made following the procedures specified in ICC-ES AC 156, as well as domestic recorded earthquakes with a magnitude greater than 5.0, were applied to analyze the structural behavior and performance of the target structures. Conducting experiments on a structure built to actual scale would be ideal, but due to practical constraints, it proved challenging to execute. Therefore, it opted for an analytical approach to assess the safety of the target structure. Regarding the structural response characteristics, the acceleration induced by seismic motion was observed to amplify by approximately ten times compared to the input seismic motions. Additionally, there was a tendency for a decrease in amplification as the response acceleration was transmitted to the point where the centre of gravity is located. For the vulnerable components, specifically the sub-system (support columns and anchorages), the stress levels were found to satisfy the allowable stress criteria. However, the concrete's tensile strength exhibited only about a 5% margin of safety compared to the allowable stress. This indicates the need for mitigation strategies in addressing these concerns. Based on the research findings presented in this paper, it is anticipated that predictable load information for the design of storage vessels required for future shaking table tests will be provided.