• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.437-450
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• 2023

A half open cross section built-up column, namely cold-formed thin-walled steel built-up column with 12-limbsection (CTSBC-12) is put forward. To deeply reveal the mechanical behaviors of CTSBC-12 under axial compression and put forward its calculation formula of axial bearing capacity, based on the previous axial compression experimental research, the finite element analysis (FEA) is conducted on 9 CTSBC-12 specimens, and then the variable parameter analysis is carried out. The results show the FEA is in good agreement with the experimental research, the ultimate bearing capacity error is within 10%. When the slenderness ratio is more than 96.54, the ultimate bearing capacity of CTSBC-12 decreases rapidly, and the failure mode changes from local buckling to global buckling. With the local buckling failure mode unchanged, the ultimate bearing capacity decreases gradually as the ratio of web height to thickness increases. Three methods are used for calculating the ultimate bearing capacity, the direct strength method of AISI S100-2007 gives result of ultimate axial load which is closest to the test and FEA results. But for simplicity and practicality, a simplified axial bearing capacity formula is proposed, which has better calculation accuracy with the slenderness ratio changing from 30 to 100.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.315-337
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• 2023

The steel structure is an assembly of individual structural members joined together by connections. The connections are the focal point to transfer the forces which is susceptible to damage easily. It is challenging to replace the affected connection parts after an earthquake. Hence, steel plates are utilised as a structural fuse that absorbs connection forces and fails first. The objective of the present research is to develop a beam-column end plate connection with single and dual fuse and study the effect of single fuse, dual fuse and combined action of fuse and damper. In this research, seismic resilient beam-column end plate connection is developed in the form of structural fuse. The novel connection consists of one main fuse was placed horizontally and secondary fuse was placed vertically over main fuse. The specimens are fabricated with the variation in number of fuse (single and dual) and position of fuse (beam flange top and bottom). From the fabricated ten specimens five specimens were loaded monotonically and five cyclically. The experimental results are compared with Finite Element Analysis results of Arunkumar and Umamaheswari (2022). The results are critically assessed in the aspect of moment-rotation behaviour, strain in connection components, connection stiffness, energy dissipation characteristics and ductility. While comparing the performance of total five specimens, the connection with fuse exhibited superior performance than the conventional connection. An equation is proposed for the moment of resistance of end-plate connection without and with structural fuse.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.455-466
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• 2023

To investigate the load bearing capacity of axially preloaded circular hollow section (CHS) stub columns strengthened by carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP), theoretical analysis is carried out. The yield strength and the ultimate strength of a CFRP strengthened preloaded CHS stub column are determined at the yielding of the CHS tube and at the CFRP fracture, respectively. Theoretical models are proposed and corresponding equations for calculating the static strengths, including the yield strength and the ultimate strength, are presented. Through comparison with reported experimental results, the theoretical predictions on the static strengths are proved to be accurate. Through finite element (FE) analyses, parametric studies for 258 models of CFRP strengthened preloaded CHS stub columns are conducted by considering different values of tube diameter, tube thickness, CFRP layer and preloading level. The static strengths of the 258 models predicted from presented equations are proved to be in good agreement with FE simulations when the diameter-to-thickness ratio is less than 90ε². The parametric study indicates that the diameter and the thickness of the steel tube have great effects on CFRP strengthening efficiency, and the recommended ranges of the diameter and the thickness are proposed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.4
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• pp.523-537
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• 2023

This paper proposed a new self-centering brace (SCB), which consists of four post-tensioned (PT) high strength steel strands and energy absorbing steel plate (EASP) clusters. First, analytical equations were derived to describe the working principle of the SCB. Then, to investigate the hysteretic performance of the SCB, four full-size specimens were manufactured and subjected to the same cyclic loading protocol. One additional specimen using only EASP clusters was also tested to highlight the contribution of PT strands. The test parameters varied in the testing process included the thickness of the EASP and the number of EASP in each cluster. Testing results shown that the SCB exhibited nearly flag-shape hysteresis up to expectation, including excellent recentering capability and satisfactory energy dissipating capacity. For all the specimens, the ratio of the recovered deformation is in the range of 89.6% to 92.1%, and the ratio of the height of the hysteresis loop to the yielding force is in the range of 0.47 to 0.77. Finally, in order to further understand the mechanism of the SCB and provide additional information to the testing results, the high-fidelity finite element (FE) models were established and the numerical results were compared against the experimental data. Good agreement between the experimental, numerical, and analytical results was observed, and the maximum difference is less than 12%. Parametric analysis was also carried out based on the validated FE model to evaluate the effect of some key parameters on the cyclic behavior of the SCB.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.86 no.4
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• pp.519-533
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• 2023

This work focuses on the dynamic analysis of thermal barrier coated straight and curved turbine blades modelled as functionally graded sandwich panel under thermal environment. The pre- twisted straight/curved blade model is considered to be fixed to the hub and, the complete assembly of the hub and blade are assumed to be rotating. The functionally graded sandwich composite blade is comprised of functionally graded face-sheet material and metal alloy core. The constituents' material properties are assumed to be temperature-dependent, however, the overall properties are evaluated using Voigt's micromechanical scheme in conjunction with the modified power-law functions. The blade model kinematics is based on the equivalent single-layer shear deformation theory. The equations of motion are derived using the extended Hamilton's principle by including the effect of centrifugal forces, and further solved via 2D- isoparametric finite element approximations. The mesh refinement and validation tests are performed to illustrate the stability and accurateness of the present model. In addition, frequency characteristics of the pre-twisted rotating sandwich blades are computed under thermal environment at various sets of parametric conditions such as twist angles, thickness ratios, aspect ratios, layer thickness ratios, volume fractions, rotational velocity and blade curvatures which can be further useful for designing the blade type structures under turbine operating conditions.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.569-585
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• 2023

This paper proposes an efficient approach for the structural topology optimization of bi-directional functionally graded structures by incorporating popular radial basis functions (RBFs) into an implicit level set (ILS) method. Compared to traditional element density-based methods, a level set (LS) description of material boundaries produces a smoother boundary description of the design. The paper develops RBF implicit modeling with multiquadric (MQ) splines, thin-plate spline (TPS), exponential spline (ES), and Gaussians (GS) to define the ILS function with high accuracy and smoothness. The optimization problem is formulated by considering RBF-based nodal densities as design variables and minimizing the compliance objective function. A LS-RBF optimization method is proposed to transform a Hamilton-Jacobi partial differential equation (PDE) into a system of coupled non-linear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) over the entire design domain using a collocation formulation of the method of lines design variables. The paper presents detailed mathematical expressions for BiDFG beams topology optimization with two different material models: continuum functionally graded (CFG) and mechanical functionally graded (MFG). Several numerical examples are presented to verify the method's efficiency, reliability, and success in accuracy, convergence speed, and insensitivity to initial designs in the topology optimization of two-dimensional (2D) structures. Overall, the paper presents a novel and efficient approach to topology optimization that can handle bi-directional functionally graded structures with complex geometries.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.601-613
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• 2023

Numerous methods have been proposed in predicting formability of sheet metals based on microstructural and macro-scale properties of sheets. However, there are limited number of papers on the optimization problem to increase formability of sheet metals. In the present study, we aim to use novel optimization algorithms in neural networks to maximize the formability of sheet metals based on tensile curve and texture of aluminum sheet metals. In this regard, experimental and numerical evaluations of effects of texture and tensile properties are conducted. The texture effects evaluation is performed using Taylor homogenization method. The data obtained from these evaluations are gathered and utilized to train and validate an artificial neural network (ANN) with different optimization methods. Several optimization method including grey wolf algorithm (GWA), chimp optimization algorithm (ChOA) and whale optimization algorithm (WOA) are engaged in the optimization problems. The results demonstrated that in aluminum alloys the most preferable texture is cube texture for the most formable sheets. On the other hand, slight differences in the tensile behavior of the aluminum sheets in other similar conditions impose no significant decreases in the forming limit diagram under stretch loading conditions.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.145-152
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• 2023

Typical floor systems in contemporary tall buildings consist of reinforced concrete or composite metal deck over framing members and account for a majority of the structural weight of the building. The use of high-density materials, such as reinforced concrete and steel, increases the weight of floor systems, reducing the system's overall efficiency. With the introduction of high-performance materials, mainly mass timber products, and fiber-reinforced composites, in the construction industry, designers and engineers have multiple options to choose from when selecting structural materials. This paper discusses the application of mass timber and carbon fiber composites as structural materials in floor systems of tall buildings. The research focused on a comparative analysis of the structural system efficiency for five different design options for tall building floor systems. Finite Element Analysis (FEA) method was adopted to develop a simulation framework, and parametric structural models were simulated to evaluate the structural performance under specific loading conditions. Simulation results revealed the advantages of lightweight structural materials to improve system efficiency and reduce material consumption. The impact of mechanical properties of materials, loading conditions, and issues related to fire engineering and construction were briefly discussed, and future research topics were identified in conclusion.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.31 no.6
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• pp.545-559
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• 2023

Nanoparticle strips (NPS) are widely used as external reinforcers for two-way reinforced concrete slabs. However, the Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) of these slabs is a very important issue and was evaluated in this study. This study has been done analytically and numerically to optimize the placement of sensors. The properties of slabs and carbon nanotubes as composite sheets were considered isotopic and orthotropic, respectively. The nonlinear Finite Element Method (FEM) approach and suitable optimal placement of sensor approach were developed as a new MATLAB toolbox called DECOMAC by the authors of this paper. The Suitable multi-objective function was considered in optimized processes based on distributed ECOMAC method. Some common concrete slabs in construction with different aspect ratios were considered as case studies. The dimension and distance of nano strips in retrofitting process were selected according to building codes. The results of Optimal Sensor Placement (OSP) by DECOMAC algorithm on un-retrofitted and retrofitted slabs were compared. The statistical analysis according to the Mann-Whitney criteria shows that there is a significant difference between them (mean P-value = 0.61).

• Composites Research
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• v.36 no.3
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• pp.173-179
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• 2023

The sandwich structure, consisting of a core and a face sheet, is used for lightweight structural application. Generally, cellular structures like honeycomb, foam, and lattice structures are utilized for the core. Among these, lattice structures have several advantages over other types of structures. In other studies, curved lattice structures were reported to have higher mechanical properties than straight structures by converting shear stresses acting on the structure into compressive stresses. Moreover, the addition of vertical struts can have a positive effect on the mechanical properties of the lattice structure. For the purpose, two lattice structures with Circle Arch (CC) and Circular Arch with a vertical column (CC_C) were studied, which were fabricated by using selective laser sintering was conducted. The result showed that CC_C has dramatic performance improvements in specific strength, modulus, and strain energy density compared to CC, confirming that vertical struts played a significant role in the lattice core. Finite element analysis was employed to determine the cause of the stress behavior of CC and CC_C. This study is expected to help design structurally superior lattice cores and sandwich structures.