• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.68 no.6
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• pp.747-760
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• 2018

In the present study, a methodology for developing fragilities of arch concrete dams to assess their performance against seismic hazards is introduced. Firstly, the probability risk and fragility curves are presented, followed by implementation and representation of the way this method is used. Amirkabir arch concrete dam was subjected to non-linear dynamic analyses. A modified three dimensional rotating smeared crack model was used to take the nonlinear behavior of mass concrete into account. The proposed model considers major characteristics of mass concrete. These characteristics are pre-softening behavior, softening initiation criteria, fracture energy conservation, suitable damping mechanism and strain rate effect. In the present analysis, complete fluid-structure interaction is included to account for appropriate fluid compressibility and absorptive reservoir boundary conditions. In this study, the Amirkabir arch concrete dam is subjected to a set of 8 three-component earthquakes each scaled to 10 increasing intensity levels. Using proposed nonlinear smeared crack model, nonlinear analysis is performed where the structure is subjected to a large set of scaled and un-scaled ground motions and the maximum responses are extracted for each one and plotted. Based on the results, fragility curves were plotted according to various and possible damages indexes. Discrete damage probabilities were calculated using statistical methods for each considered performance level and incremental nonlinear analysis. Then, fragility curves were constructed based on the lognormal distribution assumption. Two damage indexes were introduced and compared to one another. The results indicate that the dam has a proper stability under earthquake conditions at MCE level. Moreover, displacement damages index is more conservative and impractical in the fragility analysis than tensional damage index.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.193-203
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• 2021

The time-history finite element analysis is usually used to evaluate the seismic response of shallow foundations. However, the literature lacks studies on the influence of the soil constitutive model complexity on the seismic response of shallow foundations. This study, thus, aims to fill this gap by investigating the seismic response of shallow foundation resting on dry silica sand using the linear elastic (LE) model, elastic-perfectly-plastic (EPP) model, and hardening soil with small strain stiffness (HS small) model. These models have been used because it is intended to compare the results of a soil constitutive model that accurately captures the seismic response of the soil-structure interaction problems (which is the HS small model) with simpler models (the LE and EPP models) that are routinely used by practitioners in geotechnical designs. The results showed that the LE model produces a very small seismic settlement value which is approximately equal to zero. The EPP model predicts a seismic settlement higher than that produced using the HS small model for earthquakes with a peak ground acceleration (PGA) lower than 0.25 g for a relative density of 45% and 0.40 g for a relative density of 70%. However, the HS small model predicts a seismic settlement higher than the EPP model beyond the aforementioned PGA values with the difference between both models increases as the PGA rises. The results also showed that the LE and EPP models predict similar trend and magnitude of the acceleration-time relationship directly below the foundation, which was different than that predicted using the HS small model. The results reported in this paper provide a useful benchmark for future numerical studies on the response of shallow foundations subjected to seismic shake.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.33 no.11
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• pp.83-95
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• 2017

This study examined the magnitude and distribution of earth pressure on the excavation wall in jointed rock mass by considering different groundwater conditions under various rock types, joint inclination angles, and earth pressure coefficients. Based on a physical model test (Son and Park, 2014), extended studies were conducted considering rock-structure interactions based on the discrete element method, which can consider the joints characteristics of rock mass. The results showed that the earth pressure was highly influenced by the groundwater condition as well as the rock type, joint inclination angle, and earth pressure coefficient. The results were also compared with Peck's earth pressure for soil ground, and clearly showed that the earth pressure in jointed rock mass can be greatly different from that in soil ground.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Geothermal and Hydrothermal Energy
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.12-18
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• 2015

The energy pile, used for both structural foundations and heat exchangers, brings about heat exchange with the ground formation by circulating a working fluid for heating and cooling buildings. As heat exchange occurs in the energy pile, thermal stress and strain is generated in the pile body and surrounding ground formation. In order to investigate the thermo-mechanical behavior of an energy pile, a comprehensive experimental program was conducted, monitoring the thermal stress of a cast-in place energy pile equipped with five pairs of U-type heat exchanger pipes. The heating and cooling simulation both continued for 30 days. The thermal strain in the longitudinal direction of the energy pile was monitored for a 15 operation days and another 15 days monitoring followed, without the application of heat exchange. In addition, a finite element model was developed to simulate the thermo-mechanical behavior of the energy pile. A non-linear contact model was adopted to interpret the interaction at the pile-soil interface, and thermal-induced structure mechanics was considered to handle the thermo-mechanical coupled multi-field problem.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.52 no.6
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• pp.1069-1084
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• 2014

The long-term performance of plates resting on viscoelastic foundations is a major concern in the analysis of soil-structure interaction. As a powerful mathematical tool, fractional calculus may address these plate-on-foundation problems. In this paper, a fractionalized Zener model is proposed to study the time-dependent behavior of a uniformly loaded rectangular thin foundation plate. By use of the viscoelastic-elastic correspondence principle and the Laplace transforms, the analytical solutions were obtained in terms of the Mittag-Leffler function. Through the analysis of a numerical example, the calculated plate deflection, bending moment and foundation reaction were compared to those from ideal elastic and standard viscoelastic models. It is found that the upper and lower bound solutions of the plate response estimated by the proposed model can be determined using the elastic model. Based on a parametric study, the impacts of model parameters on the long-term performance of a foundation plate were systematically investigated. The results show that the two spring stiffnesses govern the upper and lower bound solutions of the plate response. By varying the values of the fractional differential order and the coefficient of viscosity, the time-dependent behavior of a foundation plate can be accurately captured. The fractional differential order seems to be dependent on the mechanical properties of the ground soil. A sandy foundation will have a small fractional differential order while in order to simulate the creeping of clay foundation, a larger fractional differential order value is needed. The fractionalized Zener model is capable of accounting for the primary and secondary consolidation processes of the foundation soil and can be used to predict the plate performance over many decades of time.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Gas
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.58-63
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• 2013

LNG(Liquefied Natural Gas) has been considered as the green energy. Thus, the demand of natural gas is keep increasing around the world, and various studies are actively under progress about the LNG storage tank. To calculate the seismic forces of actual LNG storage tank, FEM model has to include inner tank, outer tank, pile and soil to implement the interaction between structure and ground. So, this paper is represent the study about inner tank model of three cases using Malhotra method in EN 1998-4(European Standard). The results of calculation were compared, and the most suitable to inner tank model was suggested.

• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.1 no.4
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• pp.311-324
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• 2012

Previous investigations have demonstrated that strong earthquakes can cause severe damage or collapse to storage tanks. Theoretical studies by other researchers have shown that allowing the tank to uplift generally reduces the base shear and the base moment. This paper provides the necessary experimental confirmation of some of the numerical finding by other researchers. This paper reports on a series of experiments of a model tank containing water using a shake table. A comparison of the seismic behaviour of a fixed base system (tank with anchorage) and a system free to uplift (tank without anchorage) is considered. The six ground motions are scaled to the design spectrum provided by New Zealand Standard 1170.5 (2004) and a range of aspect ratios (height/radius) is considered. Measurements were made of the impulsive acceleration, the horizontal displacement of the top of the tank and uplift of the base plate. A preliminary comparison between the experimental results and the recommendations provided by the liquid storage tank design recommendations of the New Zealand Society for Earthquake Engineering is included. The measurement of anchorage forces required to avoid uplift under varying conditions will be discussed.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.55-73
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• 2014

The theoretical predictions of ground movements induced by tunnelling are usually based on the assumptions that the subsoil has the same soil densities. The theoretical prediction does not consider the impact of different sand soil types on the surface settlement due to tunnelling. The finite elements analysis (FEA) considers stress and strength parameters of the different sand soil densities. The tunnel construction requires the solution of large soil-structure interaction problem. In the present study, the FEA is used to model soil-tunnel system performance based on a case study to discuss surface displacement due to tunnelling. The Greater Cairo metro tunnel (Line 3) is considered in the present study as case study. The surface displacements obtained by surface displacement equation (SDE) proposed by Peck and Schmidt (1969) are presented and discussed. The main objective of this study is to capture the limitations of the parameters used in the SDE based on the FEA at different sand soil densities. The study focuses on the parameters used in the SDE based on different sand soil densities. The surface displacements obtained by the FEA are compared with those obtained by the SDE. The results discussed in this paper show that the different sand soil densities neglected in the SDE have a significant influence on the surface displacement due to tunnelling.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.531-549
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• 2021

Analytical models were developed and seismic behaviors were analyzed for a three-story stone pagoda at the Cheollyongsa temple site, which was damaged by the Gyeongju earthquake of 2016. Both finite and discrete element modeling were used and the analysis results were compared to the actual earthquake damage. Vulnerable parts of stone pagoda structure were identified and their seismic behaviors via sliding, rocking, and risk analyses were verified. In finite and discrete element analyses, the 3F main body stone was displaced uniaxially by 60 and 80 mm, respectively, similar to the actual displacement of 90 mm resulting from the earthquake. Considering various input conditions such as uniaxial excitation and soil-structure interaction, as well as seismic components and the distance from the epicenter, both models yielded reasonable and applicable results. The Gyeongju earthquake exhibited extreme short-period characteristics; thus, short-period structures such as stone pagodas were seriously damaged. In addition, we found that sliding occurred in the upper parts because the vertical load was low, but rocking predominated in the lower parts because most structural members were slender. The third-floor main body and roof stones were particularly vulnerable because some damage occurred when the sliding and rocking limits were exceeded. Risk analysis revealed that the probability of collapse was minimal at 0.1 g, but exceeded 80% at above 0.3 g. The collapse risks at an earthquake peak ground acceleration of 0.154 g at the immediate occupancy, life safety, and collapse prevention levels were 90%, 52%, and 6% respectively. When the actual damage was compared with the risk analysis, the stone pagoda retained earthquake-resistant performance at the life safety level.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.13-23
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• 2022

The ground-structure interaction of the bridge foundation has been pointed out as a major factor influencing the behavior of the bridge during earthquakes. In this study, the effect of characteristics of ground and bridge foundation on the earthquake vulnerability is investigated. From the pseudo-static analysis, it is confirmed that non-linearity becomes lesser and horizontal load becomes greater when surcharge is considered. It is also found that as the ground worsens and the size of foundation decreases, horizontal load reduces. To derive reasonable structural model for bridge foundation, fragility curve is obtained considering four conditions (fixed condition, equivalent linear condition, non-linear without surchage condition, non-linear with surcharge condition) and compared. Seismic analysis is performed on single pier with Opensees. From the earthquake vulnerability analysis, it is found that shallow foundation can be assumed as fixed condition. In conservative approach, stiffness of spring can be obtained based on Korean highway bridge design code for pile foundation which can consider the ground condition.