• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.76 no.4
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• pp.465-477
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• 2020

This paper presents an investigation on the dynamic behavior of SRC columns with built-in cross-shaped steels under impact load. Seven 1/2 scaled SRC specimens were subjected to low-speed impact by a gravity drop hammer test system. Three main parameters, including the lateral impact height, the axial compression ratios and the stirrup spacing, were considered in the response analysis of the specimens. The failure mode, deformation, the absorbed energy of columns, as well as impact loads are discussed. The results are mainly characterized by bending-shear failure, meanwhile specimens can maintain an acceptable integrity. More than 33% of the input impact energy is dissipated, which demonstrates its excellent impact resistance. As the impact height increases, the flexural cracks and shear cracks observed on the surface of specimens were denser and wider. The recorded time-history of impact force and mid-span displacement confirmed the three stages of relative movement between the hammer and the column. Additionally, the displacements had a notable delay compared to the rapid changes observed in the measured impact load. The deflection of the mid-span did not exceed 5.90mm while the impact load reached peak value. The impact resistance of the specimen can be improved by proper design for stirrup ratios and increasing the axial load. However, the cracking and spalling of the concrete cover at the impact point was obvious with the increasing in stiffness.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.60 no.6
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• pp.1001-1019
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• 2016

The connector is the most important part of a composite beam and promotes a composite action between a steel beam and concrete slab. This paper presents the experiment results for three large-scale beams with a newly puzzle shape of crestbond. The behavior of this connector in a composite beam was investigated, and the results were correlated with those obtained from push-out-test specimens. Four-point-bending load testing was carried out on steel-concrete composite beam models to consider the effects of the concrete strength, number of transverse rebars in the crestbond, and width of the concrete slab. Then, the deflection, ultimate load, and strains of the concrete, steel beam, and crestbond; the relative slip between the steel beam and the concrete slab at the end of the beams; and the failure mechanism were observed. The results showed that the general behavior of a steel-concrete composite beam using the newly puzzle shape of crestbond shear connectors was similar to that of a steel-concrete composite beam using conventional shear connectors. These newly puzzle shape of crestbond shear connectors can be used as shear connectors, and should be considered for application in composite bridges, which have a large number of steel beams.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.103-120
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• 2021

This research examines the eccentric compression performance of composite columns composed of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC)-filled square steel tube and profile steel. A total of 17 specimens on the composite columns with different recycled coarse aggregate (RCA) replacement percentage, RAC strength, width to thickness ratio of square steel tube, profile steel ratio, eccentricity and slenderness ratio were subjected to eccentric compression tests. The failure process and characteristic of specimens under eccentric compression loading were observed in detail. The load-lateral deflection curves, load-train curves and strain distribution on the cross section of the composite columns were also obtained and described on the basis of test data. Results corroborate that the failure characteristics and modes of the specimens with different design parameters were basically similar under eccentric compression loads. The compression side of square steel tube yields first, followed by the compression side of profile steel. Finally, the RAC in the columns was crushed and the apparent local bulging of square steel tube was also observed, which meant that the composite column was damaged and failed. The composite columns under eccentric compression loading suffered from typical bending failure. Moreover, the eccentric bearing capacity and deformation of the specimens decreased as the RCA replacement percentage and width to thickness ratio of square steel tube increased, respectively. Slenderness ratio and eccentricity had a significantly adverse effect on the eccentric compression performance of composite columns. But overall, the composite columns generally had high-bearing capacity and good deformation. Meanwhile, the mechanism of the composite columns under eccentric compression loads was also analysed in detail, and the calculation formulas on the eccentric compression capacity of composite columns were proposed via the limit equilibrium analysis method. The calculation results of the eccentric compression capacity of columns are consistent with the test results, which verify the validity of the formulas, and the conclusions can serve as references for the engineering application of this kind of composite columns.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.85 no.2
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• pp.179-195
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• 2023

The performance of reinforced concrete (RC) beam specimens strengthened using a newly proposed Side Near Surface Mounted (S-NSM) technology was investigated experimentally in this work. In addition, analytical and nonlinear finite element (FE) modeling was exploited to forecast the performance of RC members reinforced with S-NSM utilizing steel bars. Five (one control and four strengthened) RC beams were evaluated for flexural performance under static loading conditions employing four-point bending loads. Experimental variables comprise different S-NSM reinforcement ratios. The constitutive models were applied for simulating the non-linear material characteristics of used concrete, major, and strengthening reinforcements. The failure load and mode, yield and ultimate strengths, deflection, strain, cracking behavior as well as ductility of the beams were evaluated and discussed. To cope with the flexural behavior of the tested beams, a 3D non-linear FE model was simulated. In parametric investigations, the influence of S-NSM reinforcement, the efficacy of the S-NSM procedure, and the structural response ductility are examined. The experimental, numerical, and analytical outcomes show good agreement. The results revealed a significant increase in yield and ultimate strengths as well as improved failure modes.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.25-40
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• 2022

In this study, 3D coupled-consolidation numerical parametric study was conducted to predict the deformation mechanism of a 20 storey building sitting on (4×4) piled raft (with length of piles, L_p=30 m) to adjacent 6 m diameter (D) tunnelling in stiff clay. The influences of different tunnel locations relative to piles (i.e., z_t/L_p) were investigated in this parametric study. In first case, the tunnel was excavated near the pile shafts with depth of tunnel axis (z_t) of 9 m (i.e., z_t/L_p). In second and third cases, tunnels were driven at z_t of 30 m and 42 m (i.e., z_t/L_p = 1.0 and 1.4), respectively. An advanced hypoplastic clay model (which is capable of taking small-strain stiffness in account) was adopted to capture soil behaviour. The computed results revealed that tunnelling activity adjacent to a building resting on piled raft caused significant settlement, differential settlement, lateral deflection, angular distortion in the building. In addition, substantial bending moment, shear forces and changes in axial load distribution along pile length were induced. The findings from the parametric study revealed that the building and pile responses significantly influenced by tunnel location relative to pile.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.471-483
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• 2023

This paper presents an analytical hyperbolic theory based on the refined shear deformation theory for mechanical stability analysis of the simply supported advanced composites plates (exponentially, sigmoidal and power-law graded) under triangular, trapezoidal and uniform uniaxial and biaxial loading. The developed model ensures the boundary condition of the zero transverse stresses at the top and bottom surfaces without using the correction factor as first order shear deformation theory. The mathematical formulation of displacement contains only four unknowns in which the transverse deflection is divided to shear and bending components. The current study includes the effect of the geometric imperfection of the material. The modeling of the micro-void presence in the structure is based on the both true and apparent density formulas in which the porosity will be dense in the mid-plane and zero in the upper and lower surfaces (free surface) according to a logarithmic function. The analytical solutions of the uniaxial and biaxial critical buckling load are determined by solving the differential equilibrium equations of the system with the help of the Navier's method. The correctness and the effectiveness of the proposed HyRPT is confirmed by comparing the results with those found in the open literature which shows the high performance of this model to predict the stability characteristics of the FG structures employed in various fields. Several parametric analyses are performed to extract the most influenced parameters on the mechanical stability of this type of advanced composites plates.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.31 no.5
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• pp.505-518
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• 2022

This study introduces soil resistance multipliers at locations encompassed by the zone of influence of the helix plate to consider the added lateral resistance provided to the helical pile. The zone of influence of a helix plate is a function of its diameter and serves as a boundary condition for the modified soil resistance springs. The concept is based on implementing p-multipliers as a reduction factor for piles in group action. The application of modified p-y springs in the analysis of helical piles allows for better characterization and understanding of the lateral behavior of helical piles, which will help further the development of design methods. To execute the proposed method, a finite difference program, HPCap (Helical Pile Capacity), was developed by the authors using Matlab. The program computes the deflection, shear force, bending moment, and soil resistance of the helical pile and allows the user to freely input the value of the zone of influence and Ω (a coefficient that affects the value of the p-multiplier). Results from ten full-scale lateral load tests on helical piles embedded at depths of 3.0 m with varying shaft diameters, shaft thicknesses, and helix configurations were analyzed to determine the zone of influence and the magnitude of the p-multipliers. The analysis determined that the value of the p-multipliers is influenced by the ratio between the pile embedment length and the shaft diameter (D_p), the effective helix diameter (D_h-D_p), and the zone of influence. Furthermore, the zone of influence is recommended to be 1.75 times the helix diameter (D_h). Using the numerical analysis method presented in this study, the predicted deflections of the various helical pile cases showed good agreement with the observed field test results.

• International conference on construction engineering and project management
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• 2022.06a
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• pp.563-570
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• 2022

Industrialized and modular construction is a growing construction technique that can transfer a large portion of the construction process to off-site fabrication yards. This method of construction often involves the fabrication, pre-assembly, and transportation of massive and long volumetric modules. The module weight keeps increasing as the modules become more complete (with infill) to minimize the work at the site and, as higher productivity can be achieved at the fabrication shop. Thus, a volumetric module delivery gets more challenging and risky. Despite its importance, past research paid relatively insufficient attention to the problem related to the lifting of heavy modules. This can be a complex and time-consuming problem with multiple lifting for transportation-and-installation operations both in fabrication yard and jobsite, and require complex crane operations (sometimes, more than one crane) due to crane load capacity and load balance/stability. This study investigates this problem by focusing on the structural perspective of lifting such long volumetric modules through simulation studies. Various scenarios of lifting a weighty module from the top using four lifting cables attached to crane hooks (either a single crane or double crane) are simulated in SAP software. The simulations account for various factors pertaining to structural indices, e.g., bending stress and deflection, to identify a proper method of module lifting from a structural point of view. The method can identify differences in structural indices allowing identification of structural efficiency and safety levels during lifting, which further allows the selection of the number of cranes and location of lifting points.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.3
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• pp.251-264
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• 2024

The present study pertains to the effects of variations in the location and size of drilled web openings on the behavior of fixed-fixed reinforced concrete (RC) beams. For this purpose, a reference bending beam with a transverse opening in each half span was tested to failure. Later, the same beam was modeled and analyzed with the help of finite element software using ABAQUS. Upon achieving close agreement between the experimental and numerical results, the location and size of the web opening were altered to uncover the effects of these factors on the shear strength and load-deflection behavior of RC beams. The experimental failure mode of the tested beam and the numerical results were also verified by theoretical calculations. In numerical analysis, when compared to the reference (D0) specimen, if the distance of the opening center from the support is 0 or h or 2h, reduction in load-bearing capacity of 1.5%-22.8% or 2.0%-11.3% or is 4.1%-40.7%. In other words, both the numerical analyses and theoretical calculations indicated that the beam behavior shifted from shear-controlled to flexure-controlled as the openings approached the supports. Furthermore, the deformation capacities, energy absorption values, and the ductilities of the beams with different opening diameters also increased with the decreasing distance of the opening from supports. Web compression failure was shown to be the predominant mode of failure of beams with large diameters due to the lack of sufficient material in the diagonal compression strut of the beam. The present study indicated that transverse openings with diameters, not exceeding about 1/3 of the entire beam depth, do not cause the premature shear failure of RC beams. Finally, shear damage should be prevented by placing special reinforcements in the areas where such gaps are opened.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.31 no.3 s.119
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• pp.271-279
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• 2007

Ship structures are basically an assembly of plate elements and estimation load-carrying capacity or the ultimate strength is one of the most important criterion for estimated safety assessment and rational design on the ship structure. Also, Structural elements making up ship plated structures do not work separately against external load. One of the critical collapse events of a ship structure is the occurrence of overall buckling and plastic collapse of deck or bottom structure subjected to longitudinal bending. So, the deck and the bottom plates are reinforced by a number af longitudinal stiffeners to increase their strength and load-carrying capacity. For a rational design avoiding such a sudden collapse, it is very important to know the buckling and plastic behaviour or collapse pattern of the stiffened plate under axial compression. In this present study, to investigate effect af modeling range, the finite element method are used and their results are compared varying the analysis ranges. When making the FEA model, six types of structural modeling are adopted varying the cross section of stiffener. In the present paper, a series of FEM elastoplastic large deflection analyses is performed on a stiffened plate with fiat-bar, angle-bar and tee-bar stiffeners. When the applied axial loading, the influences of cross-sectional geometries on collapse behaviour are discussed. The purpose of the present study is examined to numerically calculate the characteristics of buckling and ultimate strength behavior according to the analysis method of ship's stiffened plate subject to axial loading.