• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제44권1호
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• pp.85-107
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• 2012

The building frame and its foundation along with the soil on which it rests, together constitute a complete structural system. In the conventional analysis, a structure is analysed as an independent frame assuming unyielding supports and the interactive response of soil-foundation is disregarded. This kind of analysis does not provide realistic behaviour and sometimes may cause failure of the structure. Also, the conventional analysis considers infill wall as non-structural elements and ignores its interaction with the bounding frame. In fact, the infill wall provides lateral stiffness and thus plays vital role in resisting the seismic forces. Thus, it is essential to consider its effect especially in case of high rise buildings. In the present research work the building frame, infill wall, isolated column footings (open foundation) and soil mass are considered to act as a single integral compatible structural unit to predict the nonlinear interaction behaviour of the composite system under seismic forces. The coupled isoparametric finite-infinite elements have been used for modelling of the interaction system. The material of the frame, infill and column footings has been assumed to follow perfectly linear elastic relationship whereas the well known hyperbolic soil model is used to account for the nonlinearity of the soil mass.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제18권3호
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• pp.285-296
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• 2020

Dams are important structures for management of water supply for irrigation or drinking, flood control, and electricity generation. In seismic regions, the structural safety of concrete gravity dams is important due to the high potential of life and economic loss if they fail. Therefore, the seismic analysis of existing dams in seismically active regions is crucial for predicting responses of dams to ground motions. In this paper, earthquake response of concrete gravity dams is investigated using the finite element (FE) method. The FE model accounts for dam-water-foundation rock interaction by considering compressible water, flexible foundation effects, and absorptive reservoir bottom materials. Several uncertainties regarding structural attributes of the dam and external actions are considered to obtain the fragility curves of the dam-water-foundation rock system. The structural uncertainties are sampled using the Latin Hypercube Sampling method. The Pine Flat Dam in the Central Valley of Fresno County, California, is selected to demonstrate the methodology for several limit states. The fragility curves for base sliding, and excessive deformation limit states are obtained by performing non-linear time history analyses. Tensile cracking including the complex state of stress that occurs in dams was also considered. Normal, Log-Normal and Weibull distribution types are considered as possible fits for fragility curves. It was found that the effect of the minimum principal stress on tensile strength is insignificant. It is also found that the probability of failure of tensile cracking is higher than that for base sliding of the dam. Furthermore, the loss of reservoir control is unlikely for a moderate earthquake.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• 제18권4호
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• pp.451-466
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• 2020

In this paper, the effect of Engineered Cementitious Composites (ECC) on the lateral strength of a bearing unreinforced Masonry (URM) wall, was experimentally and numerically investigated. Two half scale solid walls were constructed and were tested under quasi-static lateral loading. The first specimen was an un-retrofitted masonry wall (reference wall) while the second one was retrofitted by ECC mortar connected to the wall foundation via steel rebar dowels. The effect of pre-compression level, ECC layer thickness and one or double-side retrofitting on the URM wall lateral strength was numerically investigated. The validation of the numerical model was carried out from the experimental results. The results indicated that the application of ECC layer increases the wall lateral strength and the level of increment depends on the above mentioned parameters. Increasing pre-compression levels and the lack of connection between the ECC layer and the wall foundation reduces the influence of the ECC mortar on the wall lateral strength. In addition, the wall failure mode changes from flexure to the toe-crashing behavior. Furthermore, in the case of ECC layer connected to the wall foundation, the ECC layer thickness and double-side retrofitting showed a significant effect on the wall lateral strength. Finally, a simple method for estimating the lateral strength of retrofitted masonry walls is presented. The results of this method is in good agreement with the numerical results.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• 제5권1호
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• pp.5-12
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• 2004

Soft foundation is extensively distributed in coastal areas including our local regions. Embankment load on such soft foundation causes displacement due to lack of base ground supports. Long-term consolidation can result in settlement and destruction of shear failure and structure. Therefore, a variety of vertical drain methods are applied to construction sites to prevent base from breaking and changing for secure construction. This study analyzed the patterns of changes displacement to determine efficient range of improvement since range of vertical drain material determines vertical and horizontal changes based on the width range of under ground improvement. Changes of intensity with distance from embankment edge were also analyzed in the field study of embankment slope.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• 제28권2호
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• pp.195-207
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• 2018

First-order reliability method (FORM) is enhanced based on the search direction using relaxed conjugate reliability (RCR) approach for the embedded nanocomposite beam under buckling failure mode. The RCR method is formulated using discrete conjugate map with a limited scalar factor. A dynamical relaxed factor is proposed to control instability of proposed RCR, which is adjusted using sufficient descent condition. The characteristic of equivalent materials for nanocomposite beam are obtained by micro-electro-mechanical model. The probabilistic model of nanocomposite beam is simulated using the sinusoidal shear deformation theory (SSDT). The beam is subjected to external applied voltage in thickness direction and the surrounding elastic medium is modeled by Pasternak foundation. The governing equations are derived in terms of energy method and Hamilton's principal. Using exact solution, the implicit buckling limit state function of nanocomposite beam is proposed, which is involved various random variables including thickness of beam, length of beam, spring constant of foundation, shear constant of foundation, applied voltage, and volume fraction of ZnO nanoparticles in polymer. The robustness, accuracy and efficiency of proposed RCR method are evaluated for this engineering structural reliability problem. The results demonstrate that proposed RCR method is more accurate and robust than the excising reliability methods-based FORM. The volume fraction of ZnO nanoparticles and the applied voltage are the sensitive variables on the reliable levels of the nanocomposite beams.

• Journal of Ocean Engineering and Technology
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• 제33권3호
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• pp.245-251
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• 2019

When an offshore foundation is exposed to waves and currents, local scour could develop around a pile and even lead to structural failure. Therefore, understanding and predicting the scour due to sediment transport around foundations are important in the engineering design. In this study, the flow and scour around a monopole foundation exposed to a current were investigated using a method that coupled the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and discrete element method (DEM). The open source computation fluid dynamics library OpenFOAM and a sediment transport library were coupled in the OpenFOAM platform. The incipient motion of the particle was validated. The flow fields and sediment transport around the monopole were simulated. The scour depth development was simulated and compared with existing experimental data. For the upstream scour hole, the equilibrium scour depth could be reproduced qualitatively, and it was underestimated by about 23%.

• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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• 제6권2호
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• pp.103-124
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• 2019

Present study concerns the safety evaluation of SefidRud dam's block No. 18 regarding probable crack propagation in the foundation gallery under a MCE record. Accordingly, a 3D finite element model of the block in companion with the reservoir and the foundation is modeled. All the associated thermal and structural parameters are derived via calibration with the records of thermometers and pendulums installed inside the dam body. The origination of the cracks and their whereabouts are determined by primary thermal and static analyses and through a linear dynamic analysis the potential failure zone and their extent and level are studied. The foundation gallery is the most probable zone among the other intensive tensile stress area to compromise the dam stability. Therefore, the nonlinear analysis of this risky region is inevitable. The results depict the permissible expansion of the cracks inside the gallery even under another future earthquake in MCE level. As a consequence, the general dam performance is assessed safe in spite of the seepage flow rate growth from the gallery fractures.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Safety
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• 제35권5호
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• pp.30-38
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• 2020

In order to construct a dam, the diversion facility such as cofferdam and a diversion tunnel should be installed in advance. And size of a cofferdam depends on type of a main dam. According to the Korea Dam Design Standard, if the main dam is a concrete dam, design flood of the cofferdam is 1~2 years flood frequency. This means that overflow of the cofferdam occurs one time for 1 or 2 years, therefore, stability of the cofferdam should be secured against any overflow problem. In this study, failure probability analysis for the concrete cofferdam is performed considering the overflow. First of all, limit state function of the concrete cofferdam is defined for overturning, sliding and base pressure, and upstream water levels are set as El. 501 m, El. 503 m, El. 505 m, El. 507 m. Also, after literature investigation research, probabilistic characteristics of various random variables are determined, the failure probability of the concrete cofferdam is calculated using the Monte Carlo Simulation. As a result of the analysis, when the upstream water level rises, it means overflow, the failure probability increases rapidly. In particular, the failure probability is largest in case of flood loading condition. It is considered that the high upstream water level causes increase of the upstream water pressure and the uplift pressure on the foundation. In addition, among the overturning, the sliding and the base pressure, the overturing is the major cause for the cofferdam failure considering the overflow.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• 제85권3호
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• pp.381-391
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• 2023

The seismic performance of the tall building equipped with a tuned mass damper (TMD) considering soil-structure interaction (SSI) effects is well studied in the literature. However, these studies are performed on the nominal model of the seismic-excited structural system with SSI. Hence, the outcomes of the studies may not valid for the actual structural system. To address the study gap, the reliability theory as a useful and powerful method is utilized in the paper. The present study aims to carry out reliability analyses on tall buildings equipped with TMD under near-field pulse-like (NFPL) ground motions considering SSI effects using a subset simulation (SS) method. In the presence of uncertainties of the structural model, TMD device, foundation, soil, and near-field pulse-like ground motions, the numerical studies are performed on a benchmark 40-story building and the failure probabilities of the structures with and without TMD are evaluated. Three types of soils (dense, medium, and soft soils), different earthquake magnitudes (M_w = 7,0. 7,25. 7,5 ), different nearest fault distances (r = 5. 10 and 15 km), and three seismic performance levels of immediate occupancy (IO), life safety (LS), and collapse prevention (CP) are considered in this study. The results show that tall buildings built near faults and on soft soils are more affected by uncertainties of the structural and ground motion models. Hence, ignoring these uncertainties may result in an inaccurate estimation of the maximum seismic responses. Also, it is found the TMD is not able to reduce the failure probabilities of the structure in the IO seismic performance level, especially for high earthquake magnitudes and structures built near the fault. However, TMD is significantly effective in the reduction of failure probability for the LS and CP performance levels. For weak earthquakes and long fault distances, the failure probabilities of both structures with and without TMD are near zero, and the efficiency of the TMD in the reduction of failure probabilities is reduced by increasing earthquake magnitudes and the reduction of fault distance. As soil softness increases, the failure probability of structures both with and without TMD often increases, especially for severe near-fault earthquake motion.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 한국지반공학회 2010년도 추계 학술발표회
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• pp.658-663
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• 2010

Recently the most of deep foundation were socketed into weathered rock or soft rock to carry large foundation loads. The end bearing behavior of piles socketed in rock is generally dependent on the rock mass conditions with discontinuities and rock strength. Therefore, it is very important that the estimating rock classification with relation of TCR, RQD and unpredicted rock condition. In this study, the construction failure example of drilled shaft due to mistaking to estimate the rock classification on penetration were analyzed in site, so we hope to discuss problems of determining the rock socketed length of drilled shaft on construction.