• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.801-820
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• 2015

The seismic sequence which hit the Northern Italian territory in 2012 produced extensive damage to reinforced concrete (RC) precast buildings typically adopted as industrial facilities. The considered damaged buildings are constituted by one-storey precast structures with RC columns connected to the ground by means of isolated socket foundations. The roof structural layout is composed of pre-stressed RC beams supporting pre-stressed RC floor elements, both designed as simply supported beams. The observed damage pattern, already highlighted in previous earthquakes, is mainly related to insufficient connection strength and ductility or to the absence of mechanical devices, being the connections designed neglecting seismic loads or neglecting displacement and rotation compatibility between adjacent elements. Following the vulnerabilities emerged in past seismic events, the paper investigates the seismic performance of industrial facilities typical of the Italian territory. The European building code seismic assessment methodologies are presented and discussed, as well as the retrofit interventions required to achieve an appropriate level of seismic capacity. The assessment procedure and retrofit solutions are applied to a selected case study.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.13 no.3
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• pp.389-409
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• 2014

Precast hollow core slabs (HCS) are technically advanced products in the precast concrete industry, widely used in the last years due to their versatility, their multipurpose potential and their low cost. Using three dimensional FEM (Finite Element Method) elements, this study focuses on the stresses induced by the prestressing of steel. In particular the investigation of the spalling crack formation that takes place during prestressing is carried out, since it is important to assure the appropriate necessary margins concerning such stresses. In fact, spalling cracks may spread rapidly towards the web, leading to the detachment of the lower part of the slab. A parametric study takes place, capable of evaluating the influence of the tendon position and of the web width on the spalling stress. Consequently, after an extensive literature review on the topic of soft computing, an optimization of the HCS is performed by means of Genetic Algorithms coupled with 3-D FEM models.

• Proceedings of the Korea Concrete Institute Conference
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• 2008.11a
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• pp.205-208
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• 2008

Steel-embedded composite piers can enhance the resistance of core concrete by confinement of the steel elements and also can strengthen the stability of the embedded steel elements by concrete parts, so that the resistance of the composite members and seismic requirements can be provided without increasing section dimensions and self-weight. While modular composite piers with single segment do not need prestressing, precast segment composite piers with multiple segments need to have prestressing to prevent excessive cracking at the joints. Initial stresses and deformation by the introduced prestress are changed by long-term properties of concrete and need to be considered in the design. This paper deals with the prestress losses by the measurement of load cells, strains of reinforcements, concrete and embedded steel tubes.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2009.11a
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• pp.97-100
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• 2009

Fire resistance properties and mechanical properties of high strength concrete mock-up column using organic fiber by KS F 2257 Methods of fire resistance test for elements of building construction and compression test was investigated for application of precast concrete column method of high rise building in this study. As a test result, it was appeared that ECC permanent form is available as fire resistance method of high strength concrete and new precast concrete construction method for facilitating construction of high rise building.

• Journal of Industrial Technology
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• v.3
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• pp.103-116
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• 1983

Recent developments in multi-storey buildings for residential purpose have led to the extensive use of shear walls for the basic structural system. When the coupled shear wall system is used, joined together with cast-in-place concrete or mortar (or grout), the function of the continuous joints is a crucial factor in determining the safety of L.P. Precast concrete shear wall structures, because the function of the continuous joints(Vertical wall to wall joints) is to transfer froces from one element(shear wall panel) to another, and if sufficient strength and ductility is not developed in the continuous joints, the available strength in the adjoining elements may not be fully utilized. In this paper, the influence of the stiffness of vertical joints(wet vertical keyed shear joints) on the behaviour of precast shear walls is theoretically investigated. To define how the stiffness of the vertical joints affect the load carrying capacity of L.P.Precast concrete shear wall structure, the L.P.Precast concrete shear wall structure is analyzed, with the stiffness of the vertical joints varying from $K=0.07kg/mm^3$(50MN/m/m) to $K=1.43kg/mm^3$(1000MN/m/m), by using the continuous connection method. The results of the analysis shows that at the low values of the vertical stiffness, i.e. from $K=0.07kg/mm^3$(50MN/m/m) to $K=0.57kg/mm^3$(400MN/m/m), the resisting bending moment and shearing force of precast shear walls, the resisting shearing force of vertical joints and connecting beams are significantly affected. The detailed results of analysis are represented in the following figures and Tables.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2009.05c
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• pp.75-78
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• 2009

It was investigated fire resistance properties and mechanical properties of high strength concrete column using ECC(Engineered Cementitious Composites) permanent form by KS F 2257 Methods of fire resistance test for elements of building construction and compression test for application of precast concrete column method of high rise building in this study. As a test result, it was appeared that ECC permanent form is available as fire resistance method of high strength concrete and new precast concrete construction method for facilitating construction of high rise building.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.85 no.2
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• pp.163-177
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• 2023

The design of segmental bridges, a structure that typically employs precast prestressed concrete elements and the balanced cantilever construction method for the deck, may demand a highly complex structural analysis for increased precision of the results. This work presents a comprehensive numerical analysis of a 3D finite element model using the software ANSYS, version 21.2, to simulate the constructive deck stages of the New Guaiba Bridge, a structure located in Porto Alegre city, southern Brazil. The materials concrete and steel were considered viscoelastic. The concrete used a Generalized Kelvin model, with subroutines written in FORTRAN and added to the main model through the customization tool UPF (User Programmable Features). The steel prestressing tendons used a Generalized Maxwell model available in ANSYS. The balanced cantilever constructive steps of a span of the New Guaiba Bridge were then numerically simulated to follow the actual constructive sequence of the bridge. A comparison between the results obtained with the numerical model and the actual vertical displacement data monitored during the bridge's construction was carried out, showing a good correlation.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.195-204
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• 2024

Floor inertial forces are transferred to lateral force resisting systems through a diaphragm action during earthquakes. The diaphragm action requires floor slabs to carry in-plane forces. In precast concrete diaphragms, these forces must be carried across the joints between precast floor units as they represent planes of weakness. Therefore, diaphragm reinforcement with sufficient strength and deformability is necessary to ensure the diaphragm action for the floor inertial force transfer. In a shake table test for a three-story precast concrete structure, an unexpected local failure in the diaphragm flexural reinforcement occurred. This failure caused loss of the diaphragm action but did not trigger collapse of the structure due to a possible alternative path for the floor inertial force transfer. This paper investigates this failure event and its impact on structural seismic responses based on the shake table test and simulation results. The simulations were conducted on a structural model with discrete diaphragm elements. The structural model was also validated from the test results. The investigation indicates that additional floor inertial force will be transferred into the gravity columns after loss of the diaphragm action which can further result in the increase of seismic demands in the gravity column and diaphragms in adjacent floors.

• Magazine of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.16 no.4 s.81
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• pp.63-69
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• 2004

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
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• v.1 no.2 s.2
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• pp.111-116
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• 2001

This paper is a study on the elasto-plastic analysis of reinforced concrete precast large panel connections by rigid element spring model. In the analysis of rigid element spring model, each collapsed part or piece of structures at limiting state of loading is assumed to behave like rigid bodies. The present author propose new elements for the improement and expansion of the rigid element spring model. In this study, it is proposed how the rigid element method can be applied to the elesto-plastic analysis of precat large panel connections. Some numerical results of analytical modeling and load displacement curves are shown.