• Journal of the Korean Society for Advanced Composite Structures
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.40-46
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• 2013

This paper presents the design, fabrication and performance of a reinforced concrete beam strengthened by GFRP box plate and its possibility for structural rehabilitations. The load capacity, ductility and failure mode of reinforced concrete structures strengthened by FRP box plate were investigated and compared with traditional FRP plate strengthening method. This is intended to assess the feasibility of using FRP box plate for repair and strengthening of damaged RC beams. A series of four-point bending tests were conducted on RC beams with or without strengthening FRP systems the influence of concrete cover thickness on the performance of overall stiffness of the structure. The parameters obtained by the experimental studies were the stiffness, strength, crack width and pattern, failure mode, respectively. The test yielded complete load-deflection curves from which the increase in load capacity and the failure mode was evaluated.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.587-606
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• 2012

Concrete-filled-steel-tubular (CFST) columns have been well proven to improve effectively the strength, stiffness and ductility of concrete members. However, the central part of concrete in CFST columns is not fully utilised under uni-axial compression, bending and torsion. It has small contribution to both flexural and torsion strength, while it can be replaced effectively by steel with smaller area to give similar load-carrying capacity. Also, the confining pressure in CFST columns builds up slowly because the initial elastic dilation of concrete is small before micro-crackings of concrete are developed. From these observations, it is convinced that the central concrete can be effectively replaced by another hollow steel tube with smaller area to form double-skinned concrete-filled-steel-tubular (CFDST) columns. In this study, a series of uni-axial compression tests were carried out on CFDST and CFST columns with and without external steel rings. From the test results, it was observed that on average that the stiffness and elastic strength of CFDST columns are about 25.8% and 33.4% respectively larger than CFST columns with similar equivalent area. The averaged axial load-carrying capacity of CFDST columns is 7.8% higher than CFST columns. Lastly, a theoretical model that takes into account the confining effects of steel tube and external rings for predicting the uni-axial load-carrying capacity of CFDST columns is developed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.51 no.6
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• pp.587-600
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• 2024

In order to investigate the seismic performance of regionally confined concrete circular column with trapezoid stirrups (TRCCC) under high axial compression ratio, the confinement mechanism of regionally confined concrete was analyzed. Three regionally confined concrete circular columns with trapezoid stirrups were designed, and low cyclic loading tests were conducted at three different axial compression ratios (0.9, 1.1, 1.25) to study the failure mode, hysteresis curve, skeleton curve, deformation capacity, stiffness degradation and energy dissipation capacity of the specimens. The results indicate that the form of regional confinement concrete provides more uniform confinement to the normal confinement, and the confinement efficiency at the edges is 1.4 times that of normal confined concrete. The ductility coefficients of the specimens were all greater than 3 under high axial compression ratios, and the stiffness and horizontal bearing capacity increased with the increase of axial compression ratio. Therefore, it is recommended that the code of design specifications can appropriately relax the axial compression ratio limit for TRCCC. Finally, the spacing between stirrups of TRCCC was analyzed using ABAQUS software. The results showed that as the spacing between the stirrups decreased, the cracking load and peak load of TRCCC increased continuously, but the rate of increase decreases.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.12 no.3
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• pp.297-307
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• 2017

Evaluation on the sidesway seismic collapse capacity of the widely used low- and medium-height structures is meaningful. These structures with such type of collapse are recognized that behave as inelastic deteriorating single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) systems. To incorporate the deteriorating effects, the hysteretic loop of the nonlinear SDOF structural model is represented by a tri-linear force-displacement relationship. The concept of collapse capacity spectra are adopted, where the incremental dynamic analysis is performed to check the collapse point and a normalized ground motion intensity measure corresponding to the collapse point is used to define the collapse capacity. With a large amount of earthquake ground motions, a systematic parameter study, i.e., the influences of various ground motion parameters (site condition, magnitude, distance to rupture, and near-fault effect) as well as various structural parameters (damping, ductility, degrading stiffness, pinching behavior, accumulated damage, unloading stiffness, and P-delta effect) on the structural collapse capacity has been performed. The analytical formulas for the collapse capacity spectra considering above influences have been presented so as to quickly predict the structural collapse capacities.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.41 no.1
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• pp.95-112
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• 2012

In order to analyze the experimental hysteretic behavior of the in-plane loaded reinforced grouted multi-ribbed aerated concrete blocks masonry walls (RGMACBMW), we have carried out the pseudo static testing on the six specimens of RGMACBMW. Based on the test results and shear failure characteristics, the shear force hysteretic curves and displacement envelope curves of the models were obtained and discussed. On the basis of the hysteretic curves a general skeleton curve of the shear force and displacement was formed. The restoring model was adopted to analyze the seismic behavior and earthquake response of RGMACBMW. The deformation capacity of the specimens was discussed, and the formulas for calculating the lateral stiffness of the walls at different loading stages were proposed as well. The average lateral displacement ductility factor of RGMACBMW calculated based on the test results was 3.16. This value illustrates that if the walls are appropriately designed, it can fully meet the seismic requirement of the structures. The quadri-linear restoring models of the walls degradation by the test results accurately reflect the hysteretic behaviors and skeleton curves of the masonry walls. The restoring model can be applied to the RGMACBMW structure in earthquake response analysis.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.103-118
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• 2009

It has been reported that more than thirty five percent of steel bridges in the USA are structurally deficient because of structural degradations. The degraded structures need either full replacement or rehabilitation such that they are able to provide the required services for a longer period of time. The cost for repair in most cases is far less than the cost of replacement. Moreover, repair method generally takes less time than replacement and also reduces service interruption time. Modern advanced composites have been used in aerospace and automotive fields since World War II. In the recent past, because of the high strength-to-weight ratio and high stiffness-to-weight ratio, these composite materials have been introduced to civil engineering infrastructures primarily for repair and rehabilitation of concrete structures. However, only a few preliminary studies on repair of corroded steel structures using theses composite materials are reported in the literature available in the public domain. Thus, in this study, a series of laboratory tests was undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of this repair method using carbon fiber reinforced polymer composite. The paper discusses the test method and test results obtained from these tests.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.1
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• pp.143-162
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• 2019

A number of desirable characteristics concerning excellent durability, aesthetics, recyclability, high ductility and fire resistance have made stainless steel a preferred option in engineering practice. However, the relatively high initial cost has greatly restricted the application of stainless steel as a major structural material in general construction. This drawback can be partially overcome by introducing composite stainless steel-concrete structures, which provides a cost-efficient and sustainable solution for future stainless steel construction. This paper presents a preliminary numerical study on stainless steel-concrete composite beam-to-column joints with bolted flush endplates. In order to ensure a consistent corrosion resistance within the whole structural system, all structural steel components were designed with austenitic stainless steel, including beams, columns, endplates, bolts, reinforcing bars and shear connectors. A finite element model was developed using ABAQUS software for composite beam-to-column joints under monotonic and symmetric hogging moments, while validation was performed based on independent test results. A parametric study was subsequently conducted to investigate the effects of several critical factors on the behaviour of composite stainless steel joints. Finally, comparisons were made between the numerical results and the predictions by current design codes regarding the plastic moment capacity and the rotational stiffness of the joints. It was concluded that the present codes of practice generally overestimate the rotational stiffness and underestimate the plastic moment resistance of stainless steel-concrete composite joints.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.339-349
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• 2023

Fast-built construction is a key feature for successful applications of precast concrete (PC) moment frame system in recent construction practices. To this end, by introducing some unique splicing details in precast connections, especially between PC columns including panel zones, use of temporary supports and bracings can be minimized based on their self-sustaining nature. In addition, precast wide beams are commonly adopted for better economic feasibility. In this study, three self-sustaining precast concrete (PC) wide beam-column connection specimens were fabricated and tested under reversed cyclic loadings, and their seismic performances were quantitatively evaluated in terms of strength, ductility, failure modes, energy dissipation and stiffness degradation. Test results were compared with ASCE 41-17 nonlinear modeling curves and its corresponding acceptance criteria. On this basis, an improved macro modeling method was explored for a more accurate simulation. It appeared that all the test specimens fully satisfy the acceptance criteria, but the implicit joint model recommended in ASCE 41-17 tends to underestimate the joint shear stiffness of PC wide beam-column connection. While, the explicit joint model along with concentrated plastic hinge modeling technique is able to present better accuracy in simulating the cyclic responses of PC wide beam-column connections.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.44 no.1
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• pp.73-84
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• 2012

This paper strongly addresses to the problem of the mechanical systems in which parameters are uncertain and bounded. Interval calculation is used to find sharp bounds of the structural parameters for infilled frame system modeled with finite element method. Infill walls are generally treated as non-structural elements considerably to improve the lateral stiffness, strength and ductility of the structure together with the frame elements. Because of their complex nature, they are often neglected in the analytical model of building structures. However, in seismic design, ignoring the effect of infill wall in a numerical model does not accurately simulate the physical behavior. In this context, there are still some uncertainties in mechanical and also geometrical properties in the analysis and design procedure of infill walls. Structural uncertainties can be studied with a finite element formulation to determine sharp bounds of the structural parameters such as wall thickness and Young's modulus. In order to accomplish this sharp solution as much as possible, interval finite element approach can be considered, too. The structural parameters can be considered as interval variables by using the interval number, thus the structural stiffness matrix may be divided into the product of two parts which correspond to the interval values and the deterministic value.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.915-935
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• 2016

Steel systems composed of Reinforced Concrete column to Steel beam connection (RCS) have been raised as a structural system in the past few years. The optimized combination of steel-concrete structural elements has the advantages of both systems. Through beam and through column connections are two main categories in RCS systems. This study includes finite-element analyses of mentioned connection to investigate the seismic performance of RCS connections. The finite element model using ABAQUS software has been verified with experimental results of a through beam type connection tested in Taiwan in 2005. According to verified finite element model a parametric study has been carried out on five RCS frames with different types of lateral restraint system. The main objective of this study is to investigate the forming of plastic hinges, distribution of stresses, ductility and stiffness of these models. The results of current research showed good performance of composite systems including concrete column-steel beam in combination with steel shear wall and bracing system, are very desirable. The results show that the linear stiffness of models with X bracing and steel shear wall increase remarkably and their ultimate strength increase about three times rather than other RCS frames.