• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.24 no.1
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• pp.53-63
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• 2017

The paper presents the simplified matrix stiffness method for analysis of composite and prestressed beams. The method is based on the previously developed "exact" analysis method that uses the mathematical theory of linear integral operators to derive all relations without any mathematical simplifications besides inevitable idealizations related to the material rheological properties. However, the method is limited since the closed-form solution can be found only for specific forms of the concrete creep function. In this paper, the authors proposed the simplified analysis method by introducing the assumption that the unknown deformations change linearly with the concrete creep function. Adopting this assumption, the nonhomogeneous integral system of equations of the "exact" method simplifies to the system of algebraic equations that can be easily solved. Therefore, the proposed method is more suitable for practical applications. Its high level of accuracy in comparison to the "exact" method is preserved, which is illustrated on the numerical example. Also, it is more accurate than the well-known EM method.

• Coupled systems mechanics
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.161-184
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• 2021

Strengthening of reinforced concrete beams with externally bonded fiber reinforced polymer plates/sheets technique has become widespread in the last two decades. Although a great deal of research has been conducted on simply supported RC beams, a few studies have been carried out on continuous beams strengthened with FRP composites. This paper presents a simple uniaxial nonlinear analytical model that is able to accurately estimate the load carrying capacity and the behaviour of damaged RC continuous beams flexural strengthened with externally bonded prestressed composite plates on both of the upper and lower fibers, taking into account the thermal load. The model is based on equilibrium and deformations compatibility requirements in and all parts of the strengthened beam, i.e., the damaged concrete beam, the FRP plate and the adhesive layer. The flexural analysis results and analytical predictions for the prestressed composite strengthened damaged RC continuous beams were compared and showed very good agreement in terms of the debonding load, yield load, and ultimate load. The use of composite materials increased the ultimate load capacity compared with the non strengthened beams. The major objective of the current model is to help engineers' model FRP strengthened RC continuous beams in a simple manner. Finally, this research is helpful for the understanding on mechanical behaviour of the interface and design of the FRP-damaged RC hybrid structures.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.495-508
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• 2020

Double skin composite walls are alternatives to concrete walls to resist gravity load in structures. The composite action between steel faceplates and concrete core largely depends on the internal mechanical connectors. This paper investigates the structural behavior of novel composite wall system with T section and under combined compressive force and bending moment. The truss connectors are used to bond the steel faceplates to concrete core. Four short specimens were designed and tested under eccentric compression. The influences of the thickness of steel faceplates, the truss spacing, and the thickness of web wall were discussed based on the test results. The N-M interaction curves by AISC 360, Eurocode 4, and CECS 159 were compared with the test data. It was found that AISC 360 provided the most reasonable predictions.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.159-172
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• 2009

Two prestressed steel reinforced high performance concrete (SRC) beams, a nonprestressed SRC beam and a counterpart prestressed concrete beam were tested under low reversed cyclic loading to evaluate seismic performance of prestressed SRC beams. The failure modes, deformation restoring capacity, ductility and energy dissipation capacity of the prestressed SRC beams were discussed. Results showed that due to the effect of plastic deformations of steel beams encased in concrete, the three SRC beams exhibited residual deformation ratios ranging between 0.64 and 0.79, which were apparently higher than that of the prestressed concrete beam (0.33). The ductility coefficients of the prestressed SRC beams and the prestressed concrete beam ranged between 4.65 and 4.87, obviously lower than that of nonprestressed SRC beam (9.09), which indicated the steel beams influenced the ductility little while prestressing resulted in an apparent reduction in ductility. The amount of energy dissipated by the prestressed SRC beams was less than that dissipated by the nonprestressed SRC beam but much more than that dissipated by the prestressed concrete beam.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.41 no.2
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• pp.157-181
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• 2012

The paper presents a review of the application of the newly proposed mixed finite element model for seismic simulation of different types of composite frame structures. To evaluate the performance of the element, a comparison with displacement-based and force-based models is conducted. The study revealed that the mixed model is superior to the others in terms of both speed of convergence and numerical stability, and is therefore considered the most practical approach for modeling of composite structures. In this model, the element is derived using independent force and displacement shape functions. The nonlinear response of the frame element is based on the section discretization into fibers with uniaxial material models. The interfacial behavior is modeled using an inelastic interface element. Numerical examples to clarify the advantages of the model are presented for the following structural applications: anchored reinforcing bar problems, composite steel-concrete girders with deformable shear connectors, beam on elastic foundation elements, R/C girders strengthened with FRP sheets, R/C beam-columns with bond-slip, and prestressed concrete girders. These studies confirmed that the model represents a major advancement over existing elements in simulating the inelastic behavior of composite structures.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.43 no.6
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• pp.809-819
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• 2022

This paper proposes a method to predict the deflection of prestressed concrete (PC) beams with corrugated steel web (CSW) under constant load concerning time-dependent variation in concrete material. Over time, the top and bottom concrete slabs subjected to asymmetric compression experience shrinkage and creep deformations. Here, the classical Euler-Bernoulli beam theory assumption that the plane sections remain plane is not valid due to shear deformation of CSW. Therefore, this study presents a method based on the first-order shear deformation to find the long-term deflection of the composite beams under bending by considering time effects. Two experimental prestressed beams of this type were monitored under their self-weight over time, and the theoretical results were compared with those data. Additionally, 3D analytical models of the experimental beams were used according to material properties, and the results were compared with two previous cases. There was good consistency between the analytical and numerical results with low error, which increased by wave radius. It is concluded that the proposed method could reliably be used for design purposes.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.23 no.6
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• pp.727-736
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• 2017

The application of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) in steel structures primarily includes two categories, i.e., the bond-critical application and the contact-critical application. Debonding failure and buckling failure are the main failure modes for these two applications. Conventional electrometric techniques may not provide precise results because of the limitations associated with single-point contact measurements. A nondestructive full-field measurement technique is a valuable alternative to conventional methods. In this study, the digital image correlation (DIC) technique was adopted to investigate the bond behavior and buckling behavior of CFRP-steel composite members. The CFRP-to-steel bonded joint and the CFRP-strengthened square hollow section (SHS) steel column were tested to verify the suitability of the DIC technique. The stereo-DIC technique was utilized to measure continuous deformation. The bond-slip relationship of the CFRP-to-steel interface was derived using the DIC data. Additionally, a multi-camera DIC system consisting of four stereo-DIC subsystems was proposed and applied to the compressive test of CFRP-strengthened SHS steel column. The precise buckling location and CFRP delamination of the CFRP-strengthened SHS steel column were identified. The experimental results confirm that the stereo-DIC technique can provide effective measurements for investigating the behaviors of CFRP-steel composite members.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.379-389
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• 2018

In this research, the explicit closed-form local buckling solution of steel plates in contact with concrete, with both loaded and unloaded edges elastically restrained against rotation and subjected to eccentric compression is presented. The Rayleigh-Rize approach is applied to establish the eigenvalue problem for the local buckling performance. Buckling shape which combines trigonometric and biquadratic functions is introduced according to that used by Qin et al. (2017) on steel plate buckling under uniform compression. Explicit solutions for predicting the local buckling stress of steel plate are obtained in terms of the rotational stiffness. Based on different boundary conditions, simply yet explicit local buckling solutions are discussed in details. The proposed formulas are validated against previous research and finite element results. The influences of the loading stress gradient parameter, the aspect ratio, and the rotational stiffness on the local buckling stress resultants of steel plates with different boundary conditions were evaluated. This work can be considered as an alternative to apply a different buckling shape function to study the buckling problem of steel plate under eccentric compression comparing to the work by Qin et al. (2018), and the results are found to be in consistent with those in Qin et al. (2018).

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.79-92
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• 2017

Initial damage to a stud due to corrosion, fatigue, unexpected overloading, a weld defect or other factors could degrade the shear capacity of the stud. Based on typical push-out tests, a FEM model and theoretical formulations were proposed in this study. Six specimens with the same geometric dimensions were tested to investigate the effect of the damage degree and location on the static behavior and shear capacity of stud shear connectors. The test results indicated that a reduction of up to 36.6% and 62.9% of the section area of the shank could result in a dropping rate of 7.9% and 57.2%, respectively, compared to the standard specimen shear capacity. Numerical analysis was performed to simulate the push-out test and validated against test results. A parametrical study was performed to further investigate the damage degree and location on the shear capacity of studs based on the proposed numerical model. It was demonstrated that the shear capacity was not sensitive to the damage degree when the damage section was located at 0.5d, where d is the shank diameter, from the stud root, even if the stud had a significant reduction in area. Finally, a theoretical formula with a reduction factor K was proposed to consider the reduction of the shear capacity due to the presence of initial damage. Calculating K was accomplished in two ways: a linear relationship and a square relationship with the damage degree corresponding to the shear capacity dominated by the section area and the nominal diameter of the damaged stud. This coefficient was applied using Eurocode 4, AASHTO LRFD (2014) and GB50017-2003 (2003) and compared with the test results found in the literature. It was found that the proposed method produced good predictions of the shear capacity of stud shear connectors with initial damage.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.103-118
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• 2020

The static behavior of grouped large-headed studs (d = 30 mm) embedded in ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) was investigated by conducting push-out tests and numerical analysis. In the push-out test, no splitting cracks were found in the UHPC slab, and the shank failure control the shear capacity, indicating the large-headed stud matches well with the mechanical properties of UHPC. Besides, it is found that the shear resistance of the stud embedded in UHPC is 11.4% higher than that embedded in normal strength concrete, indicating that the shear resistance was improved. Regarding the numerical analysis, the parametric study was conducted to investigate the influence of the concrete strength, aspect ratio of stud, stud diameter, and the spacing of stud in the direction of shear force on the shear performance of the large-headed stud. It is found that the stud diameter and stud spacing have an obvious influence on the shear resistance. Based on the test and numerical analysis results, a formula was established to predict the load-slip relationship. The comparison indicates that the predicted results agree well with the test results. To accurately predict the shear resistance of the stud embedded in UHPC, a design equation for shear strength is proposed. The ratio of the calculation results to the test results is 0.99.