• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.119-130
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• 2008

Uncertainties in physical and engineering parameters for the design of shallow foundations arise from various aspects such as inherent variability and measurement error. This paper aims at investigating and reducing uncertainty from deterministic method by using the reliability-based design of shallow foundations accounting for the variation of various design parameters. A probability distribution type and statistics of random variables such as unit weight, cohesion, infernal friction angle and Young's modulus in geotechnical engineering are suggested to calculate the ultimate bearing capacities and immediate settlements of foundations. Reliability index and probability of failure are estimated based on the distribution types of random variables. Widths of foundation are calculated at target reliability index and probability of failure. It is found that application and analysis of the best-fit distribution type for each random variables are more effective than adoption of the normal distribution type in optimizing the reliability-based design of shallow foundations.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.17 no.3
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• pp.188-201
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• 2005

This is the first part of a two-part paper which describes comparison of reliability design methods by application to Donghae Harbor Breakwaters. This paper, Part 1, is restricted to stability of armor blocks, while Part 2 deals with sliding of caissons. Reliability design methods have been developed fur breakwater designs since the mid-1980s. The reliability design method is classified into three categories depending on the level of probabilistic concepts being employed. In the Level 1 method, partial safety factors are used, which are predetermined depending on the allowable probability of failure. In the Level 2 method, the probability of failure is evaluated with the reliability index, which is calculated using the means and standard deviations of the load and resistance. The load and resistance are assumed to distribute normally. In the Level 3 method, the cumulative quantity of failure (e.g. cumulative damage of armor blocks) during the lifetime of the breakwater is calculated without assumptions of normal distribution of load and resistance. Each method calculates different design parameters, but they can be expressed in terms of probability of failure so that tile difference can be compared among the different methods. In this study, we applied the reliability design methods to the stability of armor blocks of the breakwaters of Donghae Harbor, which was constructed by traditional deterministic design methods to be damaged in 1987. Analyses are made for the breakwaters before the damage and after reinforcement. The probability of failure before the damage is much higher than the target probability of failure while that for the reinforced breakwater is much lower than the target value, indicating that the breakwaters before damage and after reinforcement were under- and over-designed, respectively. On the other hand, the results of the different reliability design methods were in fairly good agreement, confirming that there is not much difference among different methods.

• Proceedings of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute Conference
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• 2000.10a
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• pp.32-39
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• 2000

Probabilistic structural design optimization, which is characterized by the so-called probabilistic. constraints which introduce permissible probability of violation, is preferred to deterministic design optimization since unpredictable inherent uncertainties and randomness in structural and environmental properties are to be taken quantitatively into account by probabilistic design optimization. In this paper, the well-known reliability index based MPFP(Most Probable Failure Point) search approach and the newly introduced target performance measure based MPTP(Minimum Performance Target Point) search approach are summarized and compared. The present comparison focuses on the number of iterations required for the estimation of probabilistic constraints and a technique for improvement which removes exhaustive iterations is presented as well. A 10 bar truss problem is examined for this.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.103-111
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• 2014

In this study, the probabilistic internal pressure fragility analysis was performed by using the non-linear finite element analysis method. The target structure is one of the containment buildings of typical domestic pressurized water reactors(PWRs). The 3-dimensional finite element model of the containment building was developed with considering the large equipment hatches. To consider uncertainties in the material properties and structural capacities, we performed the sensitivity analysis of the ultimate pressure capacity with respect to the variation of four important uncertain parameters. The results of the sensitivity analysis were used to the selection of the probabilistic variables and the determination of their probabilistic parameters. To reflect the present condition of the tendon pre-stressing force, the data of the pre-stressing force acquired from the in-service inspections of tendon forces were used for the determination of the median value. Two failure modes(leak, rupture) were considered and their limit states were defined to assess the internal pressure fragility of target containment building. The internal pressure fragilities for each failure mode were evaluated in terms of median internal pressure capacity, high confidence low probability of failure(HCLPF) capacity, and fragility curves with respect to the confidence levels. The HCLPF capacity was 115.9 psig for leak failure mode, and 125.0 psig for rupture failure mode.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.111-118
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• 2010

Reinforced steel corrosion due to concrete carbonation is one of main factors on the durability of RC structure. The carbonation velocity have an effect on carbon dioxide density, concrete quality and structural shape. Specially, these problems have increased in urban area. This study investigates the carbonation status of the bridges and quantifies the effect of carbonation based on various domestic field data. The failure probability of durability is evaluated on the basis of reliability concept. According to experimental results of the carbonation depth, the carbonation depth increased with structural age and carbonation velocity decreased with high strength of concrete. In most cases, the failure probability of durability by carbonation was more than 10%. Also, The results requires the minimum cover thickness of 70-80mm for target safety index(${\beta}$=1.3) proposed by Korean concrete specification.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.367-382
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• 2015

This paper aims to conduct the reliability-based assessment of the welded joint in the orthotropic steel bridge deck by use of a mesh-insensitive structural stress (MISS) method, which is an effective numerical procedure to determine the reliable stress distribution adjacent to the weld toe. Both the solid element model and the shell element model are first established to investigate the sensitivity of the element size and the element type in calculating the structural stress under different loading scenarios. In order to achieve realistic condition assessment of the welded joint, the probabilistic approach based on the structural reliability theory is adopted to derive the reliability index and the failure probability by taking into account the uncertainties inherent in the material properties and load conditions. The limit state function is formulated in terms of the structural resistance of the material and the load effect which is described by the structural stress obtained by the MISS method. The reliability index is computed by use of the first-order reliability method (FORM), and compared with a target reliability index to facilitate the safety assessment. The results achieved from this study reveal that the calculation of the structural stress using the MISS method is insensitive to the element size and the element type, and the obtained structural stress results serve as a reliable basis for structural reliability analysis.

• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers A
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• v.38 no.11
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• pp.1257-1264
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• 2014

Efforts are presently underway for developing an optimal design methodology for GEN-IV nuclear reactors based on target failure probabilities. A typical example is the system-based code, in which the results are represented in the form of partial safety factors (PSFs). Thus, a PSF is one of the crucial elements in either component design or integrity assessment based on target failure probabilities during the operation period. In the present study, a procedure for calculating the PSF of a circumferential through-wall cracked pipe based on the elastic-plastic crack initiation criterion is established, in which the importance of each input variable is assessed. Elastic-plastic J-integrals are calculated using the GE/EPRI and reference stress methods, and the PSF values are calculated using both first- and second-order reliability methods. Moreover, the effect of statistical distributions of assessment variables on the PSF is also evaluated.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.8 no.4
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• pp.295-307
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• 2005

The paper describes the work of the IAWE Working Group WBG - Reliability and Code Level, one of the International Codification Working Groups set up at ICWE10 in Copenhagen. The following topics are covered: sources of uncertainties in the design wind load, appropriate design target values for the exceedance probability of the design wind load for different structural classes with different consequences of a failure, yearly exceedance probability of the design wind speed and specification of the design aerodynamic coefficient for different design purposes. The recommendations from the working group are summarized at the end of the paper.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.336-344
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• 2007

A method is developed to evaluate partial safety factors for armor units, by which uncertainties of random variables in reliability function as well as wave height distribution with service periods could take into account straightforwardly. It is found that partial safety factors for resistance and wave height are correctly increased with improving target levels on failure of coastal structures at the same return and service periods. Therefore, it nay be possible to determine design variables through the same processes as those of deterministic method by using the partial safety factors for resistance and wave height evaluated in this paper, since uncertainties of random variables and the effects of service periods and target probability failure are directly considered in the processes of evaluation of partial safety factors.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.276-285
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• 2020

In this study, accelerated chloride diffusion tests were performed on OPC(Ordinary Portland Cement) and FA(Fly Ash) concrete considering three levels o f W/B(Water to Binder) ratio o n 1,095 curing days. The accelerated chloride diffusion coefficient and the passed charge were evaluated in accordance with Tang's method and ASTM C 1202, and the resistance performance to chloride attack improved over time. FA concrete showed excellent resistance performance against chloride penetration with help of pozzolanic reaction. As the result of the passed charge, FA concrete showed durability improvement, "low" grade to "very low" grade, but OPC concrete changed "moderate" grade to "low" grade at 1,095 curing days. After assuming the design variables used for durability design as normal distribution functions, the service life of each case was evaluated by the probabilistic analysis method based on MCS(Monte Carlo Simulation). In FA concrete, the increase of probability of durability failure was lower than that of OPC concrete with increasing time, because the time-dependent coefficient of FA concrete was up to 3.2 times higher than OPC concrete. In addition, the service life by probabilistic analysis was evaluated lower than the service life by deterministic analysis, since the target probability of durability failure was set to 10%. It is considered that more economical durability design will be possible if the mo re suitable target probability of durability failure is set for various structures through researches on actual conditions and indoor tests under various circumstances.