• Transactions of the Korean Society of Mechanical Engineers
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.492-501
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• 1990

It was known that the fracture incidences of offshore structure were mostly originated from the surface defects. Especially, in the case of the welded structures, since the welded region has some defects and incomplete beads which are apt to behave like the surface cracks, it has been necessary to evaluate the environmental effects on crack growth at HAZ for the design crack growth behaviour at multi-pall HAZ for SWS41 steel under free corrosion and cathodic protection(-0.9V vs Ag/Agcl) conditions. The results are summarized as follows ; (1) Crack growth rate of the as weld in air was faster than that of the parent and PWHT specimens over all .DELTA.K rang. (2) In free corrosion test, surface crack growth rate of the as welded was decreased in comparison with that of the parents. (3) In fatigue test under cathodic protection, cathodic electric potential(-0.9V vs Ag/Agcl) for the SWS41 steel parent was effective, while for the as welded ineffective. (4) There was a tendency that the exponent(m) of the Paris' equation was decreased in order of microhardness magnititude in air and under cathodic protection conditions and vise versa in free corrosion. (5) Fracture surface has dimples and ductile striations in air test, but transgranular cracks and brittle striations under cathodic protection test.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.173-181
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• 2020

Fracture properties of concrete depend on the mix proportions of the ingredients, specimen shape and size, type of testing method used for the evaluation of fracture properties. Aggregates play a key role for changes in the fracture behaviour of concrete as they constitute about 60-75 % of the total volume of the concrete. The present study deals with the effect of size and quantity of coarse aggregate on the fracture behaviour of steel fibre reinforced self compacting concrete (SFRSCC). Lower coarse aggregate and higher fine aggregate content in SCC results in the stronger interfacial transition zone and a weaker stiffness of concrete compared to vibrated concrete. As the fracture properties depend on the aggregates quantity and size particularly in SCC, three nominal sizes (20 mm, 16 mm and 12.5 mm) and three coarse to fine aggregate proportions (50-50, 45-55, 40-60) were chosen as parameters. Wedge Split Test (WST), a stable test method was adopted to arrive the requisite properties. Specimens without and with guide notch were investigated. The results are indicative of increase in fracture energy with increase in coarse aggregate size and quantity. The splitting force was maximum for specimens with 12.5 mm size which is associated with a brittle failure in the pre-ultimate stage followed by a ductile failure due to the presence of steel fibres in the post-peak stage.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.6 no.6
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• pp.627-646
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• 2014

Adobe is one of the oldest construction materials that is still used in many seismic countries, and different construction techniques are found around the world. The adobe material is characterized as a brittle material; it has acceptable compression strength but it has poor performance under tensile and shear loading conditions. Numerical modelling is an alternative approach for studying the nonlinear behaviour of masonry structures such as adobe. The lack of a comprehensive experimental database on the adobe material properties motivated the study developed here. A set of a reference material parameters for the adobe were obtained from a calibration of numerical models based on a quasi-static cyclic in-plane test on full-scale adobe wall representative of the typical Peruvian adobe constructions. The numerical modelling, within the micro and macro modelling approach, lead to a good prediction of the in-plane seismic capacity and of the damage evolution in the adobe wall considered.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.621-634
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• 2018

Flush end-plate (FEP) beam-to-column joints are commonly used for gravity load resisting parts in steel multi-storey buildings. However, in seismic resisting structures FEP joints should also provide rotation capacity consistent with the global structural displacements. The current version of EN1993-1-8 recommends a criterion aiming at controlling the thickness of the end-plate in order to avoid brittle failure of the connection, which has been developed for monotonic loading conditions assuming elastic-perfectly plastic behaviour of the connection's components in line with the theory of the component method. Hence, contrary to the design philosophy of the hierarchy of resistances implemented in EN1998-1, the over strength and the hardening of the plastic components are not directly accounted for. In light of these considerations, this paper describes and discusses the results obtained from parametric finite element simulations aiming at investigating the moment-rotation response of FEP joints under cyclic actions. The influence of bolt diameter, thickness of end-plate, number of bolt rows and shape of beam profile on the joint response is discussed and design requirements are proposed to enhance the ductility of the joints.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.1 no.2
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• pp.211-226
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• 2004

A relatively simple multiple-vertical-line-element macro model has been incorporated into a standard computer code DRAIN-2D. It was used in blind predictions of seismic response of cantilever RC walls subjected to a series of consequent earthquakes on a shaking table. The model was able to predict predominantly flexural response with relative success. It was able to predict the stiffness and the strength of the pre-cracked specimen and time-history response of the highly nonlinear wall as well as to simulate the shift of the neutral axis and corresponding varying axial force in the cantilever wall. However, failing to identify the rupture of some brittle reinforcement in the third test, the model was not able to predict post-critical, near collapse behaviour during the subsequent response to two stronger earthquakes. The analysed macro model seems to be appropriate for global analyses of complex building structures with RC structural walls subjected to moderate/strong earthquakes. However, it cannot, by definition, be used in refined research analyses monitoring local behaviour in the post critical region.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.197-213
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• 2011

Concrete is a heterogeneous material exhibiting quasi-brittle behaviour. While homogenization of concrete is commonly accepted in general engineering applications, a detailed description of the material heterogeneity using a mesoscale model becomes desirable and even necessary for problems where drastic spatial and time variation of the stress and strain is involved, for example in the analysis of local damages under impact, shock or blast load. A mesoscale model can also assist in an investigation into the underlying mechanisms affecting the bulk material behaviour under various stress conditions. Extending from existing mesoscale model studies, where use is often made of specialized codes with limited capability in the material description and numerical solutions, this paper presents a mesoscale computational model developed under a general-purpose finite element environment. The aim is to facilitate the utilization of sophisticated material descriptions (e.g., pressure and rate dependency) and advanced numerical solvers to suit a broad range of applications, including high impulsive dynamic analysis. The whole procedure encompasses a module for the generation of concrete mesoscale structure; a process for the generation of the FE mesh, considering two alternative schemes for the interface transition zone (ITZ); and the nonlinear analysis of the mesoscale FE model with an explicit time integration approach. The development of the model and various associated computational considerations are discussed in this paper (Part 1). Further numerical studies using the mesoscale model for both quasi-static and dynamic loadings will be presented in the companion paper (Part 2).

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.189-197
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• 2018

A discrete element approach is used to investigate the effects of confining stress on the shear behaviour of joint's bridge area. A punch-through shear test is used to model the concrete cracks under different shear and confining stresses. Assuming a plane strain condition, special rectangular models are prepared with dimension of $75mm{\times}100mm$. Within the specimen model and near its four corners, four equally spaced vertical notches of the same depths are provided so that the central portion of the model remains intact. The lengths of notches are 35 mm. and these models are sequentially subjected to different confining pressures ranging from 2.5 to 15 MPa. The axial load is applied to the punch through the central portion of the model. This testing and models show that the failure process is mostly governed by the confining pressure. The shear strengths of the specimens are related to the fracture pattern and failure mechanism of the discontinuities. The shear behaviour of discontinuities is related to the number of induced shear bands which are increased by increasing the confining pressure while the cracks propagation lengths are decreased. The failure stress and the crack initiation stress both are increased due to confining pressure increase. As a whole, the mechanisms of brittle shear failure changes to that of the progressive failure by increasing the confining pressure.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.37-47
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• 2019

The main objective of this study is to evaluate and compare the efficiency of ordinary Portland cement (OPC) in enhancing the unconfined compressive strength of soft soil alone and soft soil mixed with recycled tiles. The recycled tiles have been used to treat soft soil in a previous research by Al-Bared et al. (2019) and the results showed significant improvement, but the improved strength value was for samples treated with low cement content (2%). Hence, OPC is added alone in this research in various proportions and together with the optimum value of recycled tiles in order to investigate the improvement in the strength. The results of the compaction tests of the soft soil treated with recycled tiles and 2, 4, and 6% OPC revealed an increment in the maximum dry density and a decrement in the optimum moisture content. The optimum value of OPC was found to be 6%, at which the strength was the highest for both samples treated with OPC alone and samples treated with OPC and 20% recycled tiles. Under similar curing time, the strength of samples treated with recycled tiles and OPC was higher than the treated soil with the same percentage of OPC alone. The stress-strain curves showed ductile plastic behaviour for the untreated soft clay and brittle behaviour for almost all treated samples with OPC alone and OPC with recycled tiles. The microstructural tests indicated the formation of new cementitious products that were responsible for the improvement of the strength, such as calcium aluminium silicate hydrate. This research promotes recycled tiles as a green stabiliser for soil stabilisation capable of reducing the amount of OPC required for ground improvement. The replacement of OPC with recycled tiles resulted in higher strength compared to the control mix and this achievement may results in reducing both OPC in soil stabilisation and the disposal of recycled tiles into landfills.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.349-364
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• 2000

This paper aims to make a contribution to understanding which methods apply for structural analysis of beams prestressed with FRP cables. A parametric non-linear numerical analysis of simply supported beams has been performed. In this analysis the shape of the cross-section, the strength of concrete, the material adopted for the cables (steel, GFRP, CFRP), the prestressing system (bonded or unbonded prestressing) and the degree of prestressing were changed to collect a broad range of data which, the author contends, should cover the most frequent types of common practice. The output data themselves and their comparison allow us to suggest some rules that could be adopted when dealing with beams prestressed with these innovatory materials that have an elastic-brittle behaviour.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 1991.10a
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• pp.216-232
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• 1991

This Finite Element Program(TAFEM) has been developed to be able to carry out the structural analsis of tunnel section and simulate the surrounding ground behaviour due to New Austrian Tunnelling Method, of which main support is the surrounding ground, itself. The Elasto-plastic theory has been applied. The used finite elements are 8-noded isoparametric element(rock & shotcrete), 2 or 3-noded rod element(rock bolt) and infinite boundary element. The load incremental method and tangential stiffness method has been used. Associated flow rule was applied to plastic flow and yield criteria inclued not only Mohr-Coulomb but also Drucker-Prager. In this paper, Drucker-Prager yield criterion has been used. The relationship between plastic strain and stress is based on the incremental strain concept and stress-strain equation on the basis of the stress path of each gauss point has been adopted. It may be rational that rock is considered to be no-tension material, so that no-tension analysis has been adopted in accordance with the brittle fracture constitutive equation.