• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.635-647
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• 2018

In order to improve the efficiency of the Reinforced Concrete, RC, structures against progressive collapse, this paper proposes a procedure using alternate path and specific local resistance method to resist progressive collapse in intermediate RC frame structures. Cap truss consists of multiple trusses above a suddenly removed structural element to restrain excessive collapse and provide an alternate path. Steel strut is used as a brace to resist compressive axial forces. It is similar to knee braces in the geometry, responsible for enhancing ductility and preventing shear force localization around the column. In this paper, column removals in the critical position at the first story of two 5 and 10-story regular buildings strengthened using steel strut or cap truss are studied. Based on nonlinear dynamic analysis results, steel strut can only decrease vertical displacement due to sudden removal of the column at the first story about 23%. Cap truss can reduce the average vertical displacement and column axial force transferred to adjacent columns for the studied buildings about 56% and 61%, respectively due to sudden removal of the column. In other words, using cap truss, the axial force in the removed column transfers through an alternate path to adjacent columns to prevent local or general failure or to delay the progressive collapse occurrence.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.141-163
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• 2016

Fiber models have been developed and applied to various structural elements such as shear walls, beams and columns. Only scarcely have fiber models been applied to circular foundation systems such as cast in drilled holes shafts (CIDH). In pile foundations with constraint head boundary conditions, shear deformations can easily contribute to the lateral pile response. However, soil structure interaction formulations such as the p-y method, commonly used for lateral pile design, do not include structural shear deformations in its traditional derivation method. A fiber model that couples shear and axial-bending behavior, originally developed for wall elements was modified and validated on circular cross sections (columns) before being applied to a 0.61 m diameter reinforced concrete (RC) pile with fixed head boundary conditions. The analytical response was compared to measured test results of a fixed head test pile to investigate the possible impact of pile shear deformations on the displacement, shear, and moment profiles of the pile. Results showed that shear displacements and forces are not negligible and suggest that nonlinear shear deformations for RC piles should be considered for fixed-head or similar conditions. Appropriate sensor layout is recommended to capture shear deformation when deriving p-y curves from field measurements.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.63-71
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• 2018

This paper reports an experimental study that was accomplished to assess the seismic behavior of steel tube reinforced concrete bridge columns (SBCs). The motivation of this study was to verify a supposition that the core steel tube may be terminated at a rational position in the column to minimize the material cost while maintaining the seismic behavior of this composite column. Four SBC specimens were tested under combined constant axial load and cyclic reversed lateral loads. The unique variable in the test matrix was the core steel tube embedment length, which ranged from 1/3 to 3/3 of the column effective height. It is observed that SBCs showed two distinctly different failure patterns, namely brittle shear failure and ductile flexural failure. Tests results indicate that the hysteretic responses of SBCs were susceptible to the core steel tube embedment length. With the increase of this structural parameter, the lateral strength of SBC was progressively improved; the deformability and ductility, however, exhibited a tendency of first increase and then decrease. It is also found that in addition to maintained the rate of stiffness degradation and cumulative energy dissipation basically unchanged, both the ductility and deformability of SBC were significantly improved when the core steel tube was terminated at the mid-height of the column, and these were the most unexpected benefits accompanied with material cost reduction.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.74 no.1
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• pp.145-156
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• 2020

There are separate merits and demerits to wood and steel. The combination of wood and steel as a compound section is able to improve the properties of both and ultimately increase their final bearing capacity. The composite cross-section made of steel and wood has higher hardness while showing more ductility and the local buckling of steel is delayed or completely prevented. The purpose of this study is to investigate the behavior of composite columns enclosed in wooden logs and the hollow sections of steel that will be examined in a laboratory environment under the axial load to determine the final bearing capacity and sample deformation. In terms of methodology, steel sheet and carbon fiber reinforced polymer sheet (FRP) are tested to construct hollow rectangular sections and reinforce timber. Besides, the method of connecting hollow sections and timber including glue and screw has been also investigated. As a result, timber lumber enclosed with carbon fiber-reinforced polymer sheets in which fibers are horizontally located at 90° are more resistant with better ductility.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.151-159
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• 2020

An experimental study on the stress-strain relation of PVC-CFRP confined reinforced concrete columns subjected to eccentric compression was carried out. Two parameters, such as the CFRP strips spacing and eccentricity of axial load, were considered. The experimental results showed that all specimens failed by compressive yield of longitudinal steel bar and rupture of CFRP strips. The bearing capacity of specimen decreases as the eccentricity or the CFRP strips spacing increases. The stress-strain relation of specimens undergoes two stages: parabolic and linear stages. In the parabolic stage, the slope of stress-strain curve decreases gradually as the eccentricity of axial loading increases while the CFRP strips spacing has little effect on the slope of stress-strain curve. For the linear stage, the slope of stress-strain curve decreases as the eccentricity of axial load or the CFRP strips spacing increases. A model for predicting the stress-strain relation of columns under eccentric compression is proposed and it agrees well with various test data.

• Journal of the Korea Concrete Institute
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.49-57
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• 2002

As composite materials, the addition of steel fiber with concrete significant)y improves the engineering properties of structural members, notably shear strength and ductility. Flexural strength, fatigue strength, and the capacity to resist cracking are also enhanced. Especially the strengthening effect of steel fiber in shear is to prevent the brittle shear failure. In this study, shear-strengthening effect of steel fiber in RC short columns were investigated from the literature surveys and 10th specimem's member test results. From the test results, following conclusions can be made; the maximum enhancement of shear-strengthening effect can be achieved at about 1.5 ％ of steel fiber contents, shear strength and ductility capacity were improved remarkably in comparison to stiffness and energy dissipation capacity in steel fiber reinforced concrete.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.19 no.4
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• pp.403-411
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• 2007

CFT (Concrete filled steel tube) column has become popular for building construction due to not only its composite effect but also economic effect. However, the conventional CFT column also has its own disadvantages having plastic buckling at the end of column followed by the reduction of strength by yielding of steel tube. An experiment on TR-CFT (Transversely reinforced CFT) column are conducted for making up for conventional CFT column's disadvantages. The experiment parameters are strength of concrete, the layer numbers of carbon fiber sheet. In this study, hysteretic curve, initial stiffness, strength, plastic deformation capacity, and dissipated energy are compared and analyzed between CFT and TR-CFT columns.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.437-445
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• 2021

Retrofitting of structures has gained importance over the recent years. Particularly, Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) column strengthening has become a challenge to the structural engineers, owing to the risks and complexities involved in it. There are several methods of RCC column strengthening viz. RCC jacketing, steel jacketing and Fiber Reinforced Polymer (FRP) wrapping etc., FRP wrapping is the most promising alternative when compared to the others. The large research database shows FRP wrapping, through lateral confinement, improves the axial load carrying capacity of the columns under concentric loading. However, its confining efficiency reduces under eccentric loading. Hence a relative newer technique called Near Surface Mounting (NSM), in which Carbon FRP (CFRP) strips are epoxy grouted to the precut grooves in the cover concrete of the columns, has been thrust domain of research. NSM technique strengthens the column nominally under concentric load case while significantly under eccentric case. A novel configuration of NSM in which the vertical NSM (VNSM) strips are being connected by horizontal NSM (HNSM) strips was numerically investigated under both concentric and eccentric loading. It was found that the configuration with 6 HNSM strips performed better under eccentric loading than under concentric loading, while the configuration with 3 HNSM strips performed better under concentric loading than under eccentric loading. Hence an optimum of 4 HNSM strips is recommended as strengthening measure for the given column specifications. It was also found that Aluminum alloy cannot be used instead of CFRP in NSM applications owing to its lower mechanical properties.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.80 no.6
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• pp.737-747
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• 2021

The objective of seismic resilience is to maintain or rapidly restore the function of a building after an earthquake. An efficient tilt mechanism at the member level is crucial for the restoration of the main structure function; however, the damage resistance of the members should be the main focus. In this study, through a comparison with the classical Flamant theory of local loading in the elastic half-space, an elastomechanical solution for the axial-stress distribution of a reinforced-concrete (RC) rocking column was derived. Furthermore, assuming that the lateral displacement of the rocking column is determined by the contact surface rotation angle of the column end and bending and shear deformation of the column body, the load-lateral displacement mechanical model of the RC rocking column was established and validated through a comparison with finite-element simulation results. The axial-compression ratio and column-end strength were analyzed, and the results indicated that on the premise of column damage resistance, simply increasing the axial-compression ratio increases the lateral loading capacity of the column but is ineffective for improving the lateral-displacement capacity. The lateral loading and displacement of the column are significantly improved as the strength of the column end material increases. Therefore, it is feasible to improve the working performance of RC rocking columns via local reinforcement of the column end.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.345-353
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• 2022

The configuration of an open ground floor (pilotis) is a common and very critical irregularity observed in multistory reinforced concrete frame structures. The characteristics and the geometrical formation of the beams of the first story proved to be a critical parameter for the overall seismic behavior of this type of Reinforced Concrete (RC) structures. In this work the combination of open ground floor (pilotis) morphology with very strong perimetrical beams at the level of the first story is studied. The observation of the seismic damages and the in situ measurements of the fundamental period of four buildings with this morphology and Π-shaped plan view are presented herein. Further analytical results of a pilotis type Π-shaped RC structure are also included in the study. From the measurements and the analytical results yield that the open ground floor configuration greatly influences the fundamental period whereas this morphology in combination with strong beams can lead to severe local shear damages in the columns of the ground floor. The structural damage was limited in the columns of the ground floor and yet based on the changes of the in situ measured fundamental period the damaged level is assessed as DI=88%. Furthermore, due to the Π-shape of the plan view the tendency of the parts of the building to move independently strongly influences the distribution of the damages over the ground floor vertical elements.