• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.117-126
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• 2017

The component method is an analytical approach for investigating the moment-rotation relationship of steel connections. In this study, the component method was improved from two aspects: (i) load analysis of mechanical model; and (ii) combination of spring elements. An optimized component method with more reasonable component models, spring arrangement position, and boundary conditions was developed using finite element analysis. An experimental testing program in two major-axis and two minor-axis connections under symmetrically loading was carried out to verify this method. The initial rotational stiffness obtained from the optimized component method was consistent with the experimental results. It can be concluded that (i) The coupling stiffness between column and beam flanges significantly affects the effective height of the tensile-column web. (ii) The mechanical properties of the bending components were obtained using an equivalent t-stub model considering the bending capacity of bolts. (iii) Using the optimized mechanical components, the initial rotational stiffness was accurately calculated using the spring system. (iv) The characteristics of moment-rotation relationship for beam to column connections were effectively expressed by the SPRING element analysis model using ABAQUS. The calculations are simpler, and the results are accurate.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.349-366
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• 2009

The composite slim beam has become popular throughout Europe in recent years and has also been used on some projects in China. With its steel section encased in a concrete slab, the steel-concrete composite slim beam can provide the floor construction with minimum depth and high fire resistance. However, the design method of the T-shape steel-concrete composite beam is no longer applicable to the composite slim beam with deep deck for its special construction, of which the present design models are not available but mainly depend on experiences. The elevation of the flexural stiffness and bending capacity of composite slim beams with deep deck is rather complicated, because the influences of many factors should be taken into account, such as the variable section dimensions, development of cracks and non-linear characteristics of concrete, etc. In this paper, experimental investigations have been conducted into the flexural behavior of two specimens of simply supported composite slim beam with deep deck. The emphases were laid on the bonding force on the interface between steel beam and concrete, the stress distribution of beam section, the flexural stiffness and bending capacity of the composite beams. Based on the experimental results, the reduction factor of equivalent stress distribution in concrete flange is suggested, and the calculation method of flexural stiffness and bending capacity of simply supported slim beams are proposed.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.411-424
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• 2018

This study explores the inelastic behavior of systems with flexible base. The use of a single degree of freedom system (ESDOF) with equivalent ductility to represent the response of flexible base systems is discussed. Two different equations to compute equivalent ductility are proposed, one which includes the contribution of rigid body components, and other based on the overstrength of the structure. In order to asses the accuracy of ESDOF approach with the proposed equations, the behavior of a 10-story regular building with reinforced concrete (RC) moment resisting frames is studied. Local and global ductility capacity and demands are used to study the modifications introduced by base flexibility. Three soil types are considered with shear wave velocities of 70, 100 and 250 m/s. Soil-foundation stiffness is included with a set of springs on the base (impedance functions). Capacity curves of the building are computed with pushover analysis. In addition, non linear time history analysis are used to asses the ductility demands. Results show that ductility capacity of the soil-structure system including rigid body components is reduced. Base flexibility does not modify neither yield and maximum base shear. Equivalent ductility estimated with the proposed equations is fits better the results of the numerical model than the one considering elastoplastic behavior. Modification of beams ductility demand due to base flexibility are not constant within the structure. Some elements experience reduced ductility demands while other elements experience increments when flexible base is considered. Soil structure interaction produces changes in the relation between yield strength reduction factor and structure ductility demand. These changes are dependent on the spectral shape and the period of the system with fixed and flexible base.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.241-248
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• 1987

The theoretical backgrounds of the several methods were surveyed and reviewed to fin out the adequate one to determine equivalent modal damping values in solving the dynamic problem of soil-structure interaction by mode superposition method. Furthermore the rigorous damping matrix of equation of motion was obtained through component mode synthesis technique and used in direct integration of the equation. The analytical results by direct integration method were compared with those of mode superposition approach using the various sets of equivalent modal damping values calculated by the methods to be reviewed. Two types of superstructures and four kinds of subsurface conditions were considered and combined to make soil-structure coupled models. It was realized that dissipating energy method gives the equivalent modal damping values which lead the most similar results to direct integration ones. In case of fixed base, the responses of all methods except stiffness weighted approach are almost equal to those of direct integration method.

• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.447-454
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• 2012

Considering that the weight of a hollow slab system is not increased with an incremental increase in its thickness, and that the flexural stiffness of a hollow slab is not significantly lower than that of a general slab, there has been a growing need for hollow slab system, because long span structures are in great demand. In a long span structure, the problem of vibration of floor slabs frequently occurs, and the dynamic characteristics of a hollow slab system are quite different from the conventional floor system. It is required to investigate the safety and the serviceability of hollow slab. Therefore, there exists a necessity for accurate vibration analysis. Hollow slab should be modeled by refined mesh for accurate vibration analysis. For the efficiency of the Eigenvalue Analysis, an equivalent plate slab model when can relatively precisely represent the dynamic behavior of a one-way hollow slab system is used. In conclusion, equivalent plate models relatively precisely presented the dynamic characteristics of one-way hollows.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.69 no.3
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• pp.257-268
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• 2019

Infills are as important members in structural design as beams, columns and braces. They have significant effect on structural behavior. Because of lots of variables in infills like material non-linear behavior, the interaction between frames and infill, etc., the infills performance during an earthquake is complicated, so have led designers do not consider the effect of infills in designing the structure. However, the experimental studies revealed that the infills have the remarkable effect on structure behavior. As if these effects ignored, it might occur soft-story phenomena, torsion or short-column effects on the structures. One simple and appropriate method for considering the infills effects in analyzing, is replacing the infills with diagonal compression strut with the same performance of real infill, instead of designing the whole infill. Because of too many uncertainties, codes and researchers gave many expressions that were not as the same as the others. The major intent of this paper is calculation the width of this diagonal strut, which has the most characteristics of infill. This paper by comprehensive on different parameters like the modulus of young or moment of inertia of columns presents a new formula for achieving the equivalent strut width. In fact, this new formula is extracted from about 60 FEM analyses models. It can be said that this formula is very efficient and accurate in estimating the equivalent strut width, considering the large number of effective parameters relative to similar relationships provided by other researchers. In most cases, the results are so close to the values obtained by the FEM. In this formula, the effect of out of plane buckling is neglected and this formula is used just in steel structures. Also, the thickness of infill panel, and the lateral force applied to frame are constant. In addition, this new formula is just for modeling the lateral stiffness. Obtaining the nearest response in analyzing is important to the designers, so this new formula can help them to reach more accurate response among a lot of experimental equations proposed by researchers.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.20 no.2
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• pp.15-26
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• 2004

Based on an estimating method for post-cyclic strength and stiffness with cyclic triaxial tests proposed by one of the authors, cyclic Direct Simple Shear (DSS) tests were carried out to confirm whether the method can be adapted to DSS test on fine-grained soils: silty clay, plastic silt, and non-plastic silt. Results from cyclic and post-cyclic DSS tests were interpreted by a modified method as adopted for cyclic and post-cyclic triaxial tests. In particular, influence of plasticity index for fine-grained soils and initial static shear stress (ISSS) was emphasised. Findings obtained from the present study are: (i) liquefaction strength ratio of fine-grained soils decreases with decreasing plasticity index and increasing ISSS; (ii) plasticity index and ISSS did not markedly influence relation between equivalent cyclic stiffness and shear strain relations; (iii) the higher the plasticity index of fine-grained soils is, the less the strength ratio decreases with increment of a normalcies excess pore water pressure (NEPWP); (iv) stiffness ratio of plastic silt has large activity decrease rapidly with increasing excess pore water pressure; and (v) post-cyclic strength and stiffness results from DSS tests agree well with those predicted by the method modified from a procedure used for triaxial test results.

• Journal of the Society of Naval Architects of Korea
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.193-201
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• 1992

A new equivalent curved beam theory is developed for the analysis of the corner part of ship structures, in which effects of distributed loads and asymmetricity with two or three connected parts are considered. Equivalent loads are obtained from equilibrium conditions between the distributed loads and the member forces and moments at the ends of curved beam. And an equivalent curved beam for the asymmetric structure is obtained by superposing the equivalent symmetric parts which have equivalent stiffness. From the sample calculation, it is found that the results of the new equivalent curved beam theory are well agreed with those of finite element method using membrane elements with little computing time and sufficient accuracy.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.43-67
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• 2010

A gradient-based evolutionary optimization methodology is presented for finding the optimal design of both the added dampers and their supporting members to minimize an objective function of a linear multi-storey structure subjected to the critical ground acceleration. The objective function is taken as the sum of the stochastic interstorey drifts. A frequency-dependent viscoelastic damper and the supporting member are treated as a vibration control device. Due to the added stiffness by the supplemental viscoelastic damper, the variable critical excitation needs to be updated simultaneously within the evolutionary phase of the optimal damper placement. Two different models of the entire damper unit are investigated. The first model is a detailed model referred to as "the 3N model" where the relative displacement in each component (i.e., the spring and the dashpot) of the damper unit is defined. The second model is a simpler model referred to as "the N model" where the entire damper unit is converted into an equivalent frequency-dependent Kelvin-Voigt model. Numerical analyses for 3 and 10-storey building models are conducted to investigate the characters of the optimal design using these models and to examine the validity of the proposed technique.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.33 no.2
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• pp.215-238
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• 2009

This paper introduces an improved modal pushover analysis (IMPA) which can effectively evaluate the seismic response of multi-span continuous bridge structures on the basis of modal pushover analysis (MPA). Differently from previous modal pushover analyses which cause the numerical unstability because of the occurrence of reversed relation between the pushover load and displacement, the proposed method eliminates this numerical instability and, in advance the coupling effects induced from the direct application of modal decomposition by introducing an identical stiffness ratio for each dynamic mode at the post-yielding stage together with an approximate elastic deformation. In addition to these two introductions, the use of an effective seismic load, calculated from the modal spatial force and applied as the distributed load, makes it possible to predict the dynamic responses of all bridge structures through a simpler analysis procedure than those in conventional modal pushover analyses. Finally, in order to establish validity and applicability of the proposed method, correlation studies between a rigorous nonlinear time history analysis and the proposed method were conducted for multi-span continuous bridges.