• Computers and Concrete
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• 제21권6호
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• pp.661-667
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• 2018

The purpose of this study was to model and design a concrete catenary shell using a modern computer program without performing experiments. The modeling idea stems from the study by Pendergrast, but he listed supplementary items that should be improved in his paper. This study aims to resolve those issues and overcome the drawbacks of the study by Pendergrast. The process of experiment for the design of a catenary shell was reproduced by Grasshopper script. In order to ensure credibility, two models designed from the Grasshopper script were analyzed using a finite element program, SAP2000; one is a square-based catenary shell and the other is a special catenary shell called as the Naturtheater $Gr{\ddot{o}}tzingen$ shell, which was completed in 1977. First, the developed modeling approach was proved to be reasonable from the analysis of the square-based shell. The reliability was further confirmed by a comparison between the current and previous analysis results for the Naturtheater $Gr{\ddot{o}}tzingen$ shell.

• Computers and Concrete
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• 제19권2호
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• pp.191-201
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• 2017

External pre-stressing is often used in strengthening or retrofitting of steel-concrete composite beams. In this way, a proper numerical model should be able to trace the completely nonlinear response of these structures at service and ultimate loads. A three dimensional finite element model based on shell elements for representing the concrete slab and the steel beam are used in this work. Partial interaction at the slab-beam interface can be taken into account by using special beam-column elements as shear connectors. External pre-stressed tendons are modeled by using one-dimensional catenary elements. Contact elements are included in the analysis to represent the slipping at the tendon-deviator locations. Validation of the numerical model is established by simulating seven pre-stressed steel-concrete composite beams with experimental results. The model predictions agree well with the experimental results in terms of collapse loads, path failures and cracking lengths at negative moment regions due to service loads. Finally, the accuracy of some simplified formulas found in the specialized literature to predict cracking lengths at interior supports at service loading and for the evaluation of ultimate bending moments is also examined in this work.