• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.5 no.5
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• pp.565-585
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• 2009

Superelastic Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) are gaining acceptance for use as reinforcing bars in concrete structures. The seismic behaviour of concrete frames reinforced with SMAs is being assessed in this study. Two eight-storey concrete frames, one of which is reinforced with regular steel and the other with SMAs at the plastic hinge regions of beams and regular steel elsewhere, are designed and analyzed using 10 different ground motion records. Both frames are located in the highly seismic region of Western Canada and are designed and detailed according to current seismic design standards. The validation of a finite element (FE) program that was conducted previously at the element level is extended to the structure level in this paper using the results of a shake table test of a three-storey moment resisting steel RC frame. The ten accelerograms that are chosen for analyzing the designed RC frames are scaled based on the spectral ordinate at the fundamental periods of the frames. The behaviour of both frames under scaled seismic excitations is compared in terms of maximum inter-storey drift, top-storey drift, inter-storey residual drift, and residual top-storey drift. The results show that SMA-RC frames are able to recover most of its post-yield deformation, even after a strong earthquake.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.385-414
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• 2010

In current European Standard EN 1993, the moment-rotation characteristics of beam-to-column joints made from steel with a yield stress > 460MPa are obtained from elastic design procedures. The strength of the joint basic components, such as the column web subject to local transverse compression, is thus limited to the yield resistance rather than the plastic resistance. With the recent developments of higher strength steel grades, the need for these restrictions should be revisited. However, as the strength of the steel is increased, the buckling characteristics become more significant and thus instability phenomena may govern the design. This paper summarizes a comprehensive set of finite element parametric studies pertaining to the strength behaviour of high-strength steel unstiffened I-columns in transverse compression. The paper outlines the implementation and validation of a three-dimensional finite element model and presents the relevant numerical test results. The finite element predictions are evaluated against the strength values anticipated by the EN 1993 for conventional steel columns and recommendations are made for revising the specifications.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.49-58
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• 2018

Open-mode cracks could be commonly observed in layered rocks. A concept model is firstly used to explore the mechanism of the vertical cracks (VCs) in the top layer. Then the crack behaviour of the two-layer model is simulated based on a cohesive zone model (CZM) for layer interfaces and a plastic-damage model for rocks. The model indicates that the tensile stress normal to the VCs changes to compression if the crack spacing to layer thickness ratio is lower than a threshold. The results indicate that there is a threshold for interfacial shear strength that controls the crack patterns of the layered system. If the shear strength is lower than the threshold, the top layer is meshed by the VCs and interfacial cracks (ICs). When the shear strength is higher than the threshold, the top layer is meshed by the VCs and parallel cracks (PCs). If the shear strength is comparative to the threshold, a combining pattern of VCs, PCs and ICs for the top layer can be formed. The evolutions of stress distribution in the crack-bound block indicate that the ICs and PCs can reduce the load transferred for the substrate layer, and thus leads to a crack saturation state.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.14 no.3
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• pp.233-240
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• 2018

Pullout tests are usually employed to determine the ultimate bearing capacity of reinforced soil, and the load-displacement curve can be obtained easily. This paper presents an analytical solution for predicting the full-range mechanical behavior of a buried planar reinforcement subjected to pullout based on a bi-linear bond-slip model. The full-range behavior consists of three consecutive stages: elastic stage, elastic-plastic stage and debonding stage. For each stage, closed-form solutions for the load-displacement relationship, the interfacial slip distribution, the interfacial shear stress distribution and the axial stress distribution along the planar reinforcement were derived. The ultimate load and the effective bond length were also obtained. Then the analytical model was calibrated and validated against three pullout experimental tests. The predicted load-displacement curves as well as the internal displacement distribution are in closed agreement with test results. Moreover, a parametric study on the effect of anchorage length, reinforcement axial stiffness, interfacial shear stiffness and interfacial shear strength is also presented, providing insights into the pullout behaviour of planar reinforcements of MSE structures.

• Geotechnical Engineering
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.81-96
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• 1992

This paper dealt with the influence of experimental error generated inevitably during performing experiments on the granular soil behaviour analysis selecting Lade's Single Work-Hardening constitutive model. Several isotropic compression-expansion tests and a series of drained conventional triaxial tests with various confining pressures for Baekma river sands were performed and the values of parameters for the above model were determined using computer program developed for this study based on regression analysis. By finding the range of the upper and lower bound for deviator stress and volumetric strain versus axial strain dependant on the increase and decrease of the standard deviation from mean value of parameters, sensitivities of all the parameters were examined. Practical use of program to determine the parameters and capability to predict the behaviour of granular soil by Lade's Single Work -Hardening model verified.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.277-293
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• 2012

The interaction between steel tube and concrete core is the key design considerations for concrete-filled steel tube columns. In a concrete-filled steel tube (CFST) column, the steel tube provides confinement to the concrete core which permits the composite action among the steel tube and the concrete. Due to construction faults and plastic shrinkage of concrete, the debonding separation at the steel-concrete interface weakens the confinement effect, and hence affects the behaviour and bearing capacity of the composite member. This study investigates the axial loading behavior of the concrete filled circular steel tube columns with debonding separation. A three-dimensional nonlinear finite element model of CFST composite columns with introduced debonding gap was developed. The results from the finite element analysis captured successfully the experimental behaviours. The calibrated finite element models were then utilized to assess the influence of concrete strength, steel yield stress and the steel-concrete ratio on the debonding behaviour. The findings indicate a likely significant drop in the load carrying capacity with the increase of the size of the debonding gap. A design formula is proposed to reduce the load carrying capacity with the presence of debonding separation.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.17-35
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• 2008

Neglecting the real joint behaviour in frame analysis may result in unrealistic predictions of the response and reliability of steel frames. The reliability of the prediction of main joint properties according to the component method (Eurocode 3-Part 1.8) still remains open to further investigation. The first step toward the solution is to compare the theoretical expressions given in EN 1993-1-8 and the experimental results. With that goal in mind six nominally the same, but really different specimens of welded beam-to-column joints subjected to static load were tested. The specimens present a combination of nominally identical structural elements produced in different European mills. This paper provides these tests, as well as their detailed evaulation and interpretation. All three joint structural properties (rotational stiffness, moment resistance and rotation capacity) have been considered. Four models for determining the plastic resistance out of experimental Mj-${\phi}$ curves have been applied. The results that have been discussed in detail, point to the fact that EN 1993-1-8 underestimates the real structural properties of the tested type of joint, as well as to the conclusion that detailed research of this problem needs to be conducted using the probabilistic reliability methods.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.307-330
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• 2012

This work intends to contribute for the improvement of the procedure suggested by Brazilian Technical Code that takes into account the cracked concrete stiffness in the estimative of the displacement of reinforced concrete beams submitted to service loads. A damage constitutive model accounting for induced anisotropy, plastic deformations and bimodular elastic response is used in order to simulate the concrete behaviour, while an elastoplastic behaviour is admitted for the reinforcement. The constitutive models were implemented in a program for bars structures analysis with layered finite elements. Initially, the damage model is briefly presented as well as the parametric identification of the materials that have been used in the reinforced concrete beams. After that, beams with different geometries and reinforcement area are analyzed and a statistical method (ANOVA) is employed in order to identify the main variables in the problem. Soon after, the same procedure is used with another resistance of concrete, where the compression strength is changed. The numerical responses are compared with the ones obtained by Brazilian Technical Code and experimental tests in order to validate the use of the damage model. Finally, some remarks are discussed based on responses presented in this work.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.85 no.1
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• pp.89-104
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• 2023

This work presents a proposal for employing reduced numerical integration in the formulation of the 4-node quadrilateral solid finite element. The use of these low-order integration rules leads to numerical instabilities such as those producing the hourglass effect. The proposed procedure allows evaluating a given constitutive model only in one integration point, achieving an attractive computational cost reduction and, also, successfully controls the hourglass effect. A validation of the proposal is included and discussed throughout the paper. To show the efficiency of the proposal, several application examples of masonry structures are studied and discussed. To represent the non-linear mechanical behaviour of masonry a plastic-damage model is implemented within the application of this sub-integration scheme. Also, in order to have a full and computationally efficient strategy to determine the behaviour of masonry structures, involving its evolution to collapse, a homogenization technique with a macro-modeling approach is used. The methodology discussed throughout this paper demonstrates a substantial computational cost reduction and an improved approximation of the non-linear problem evidenced by a reduction of up to 85% of the computational time for some cases.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.221-231
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• 2023

Biopolymer stabilization is a sustainable alternative to traditional techniques that cause a lesser negative impact on the environment during production and application. The study aims to minimize the biopolymer dosages by sizing the bio-additives to the nanoscale. This study combines the advantages of bio and nanomaterials in geotechnical engineering applications and attempts to investigate the behaviour of a low viscous biopolymer, nano sodium carboxymethyl cellulose (nCMC), to treat organic soil. Soil is treated with 0.25%, 0.50%, 0.75% and 1.00% of nano-bio additive, and its effect on the plastic behaviour, compaction characteristics, strength, hydraulic conductivity (HC) and compressible nature are investigated. The strength increased by 1.68 times after 90 days of curing at a dosage of 0.5% nCMC through the formation of gel threads connecting the soil particles that stiffened the matrix. The viscosity of 1% nCMC increased exponentially, deterring fluid flow through the voids and reduced the HC by 0.85 times after curing for 90 days. Also, beyond the optimum dosage of 0.50%, the nCMC forms a film around the soil particles that inhibits the inter-particle cohesion causing a reduction in strength. Experimental results show that nCMC can effectively substitute conventional additives to stabilize the soil.