• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.75-86
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• 1993

The punching shear strength of concrete flat plates is one of the topics of intensive research in recent years by various concrete structures researchers. This paper reviews four current methods of analysing the punching shear strength at the corner-and edge-column positions of reinforced concrete flat plates. They include those recommended in the Australian Standard AS3600-1988, the American Concrete Institute ACI318-89 and the British Standard on Concrete Practices (BS8110) as well as the approach developed at the University of Wollongong, Australia. Based on half-scale model test results, a comparative study of these four analysis methods is made with regard to their limitation, accuracy and reliability. It is found that the Wollongong approach in general gives the best performance in predicting the punching shear strength of flat plates with torsion strips and those with spandrel beams. The Australian Standard procedure performs just as satisfactorily for flat plates with torsion strips but tends to be unsafe for those with spandrel beams. Both the ACI and the British methods are applicable only to flat plates with torsion strips; they also tend to give unsafe predictions for the punching shear strength.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.16 no.4
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• pp.493-517
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• 2003

Attempts at improving beam-column joint performance has resulted in non-conventional ways of reinforcement such as the use of the crossed inclined bars in the joint area. Despite the wide accumulation of test data, the influence of the crossed inclined bars on the shear strength of the cyclically loaded exterior beam-column joints has not yet been quantified and incorporated into code recommendations. In this study, the investigation of joints has been pursued on two different fronts. In the first approach, the parameters that influence the behaviour of the cyclically loaded beam-column joints are investigated. Several parametric studies are carried out to explore the shear resisting mechanisms of cyclically loaded beam-column joints using an experimental database consisting of a large number of joint tests. In the second approach, the mechanical behaviour of joints is investigated and the equations for the principal tensile strain and the average shear stress are derived from joint mechanics. It is apparent that the predictions of these two approaches agree well with each other. A design equation that predicts the shear strength of the cyclically loaded exterior beam-column joints is proposed. The design equation proposed has three major differences from the previously suggested design equations. First, the influence of the bond conditions on the joint shear strength is considered. Second, the equation takes the influence of the shear transfer mechanisms of the crossed inclined bars into account and, third, the equation is applicable on joints with high concrete cylinder strength. The proposed equation is compared with the predictions of the other design equations. It is apparent that the proposed design equation predicts the joint shear strength accurately and is an improvement on the existing code recommendations.