• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.1 no.4
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• pp.393-410
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• 2001

In an experimental and analytical study on the structural behavior of slender circular steel-concrete composite columns, eleven specimens were tested to investigate the effects of three ways to apply a load to a column. The load was applied eccentrically to the concrete section, to the steel section or to the entire section. Three-dimensional nonlinear finite element models were established and verified with the experimental results. The analytical models were also used to study how the behavior of the column was influenced by the bond strength between the steel tube and the concrete core and the by confinement of the concrete core offered by the steel tube. The results obtained from the tests and the finite element analyses showed that the behavior of the column was greatly influenced by the method used to apply a load to the column section. When relying on just the natural bond, full composite action was achieved only when the load was applied to the entire section of the column. Furthermore, because of the slenderness effects the columns did not exhibit the beneficial effects of composite behavior in terms of increased concrete strength due to the confinement.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.1305-1322
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• 2016

This paper presents the results of experimental and numerical model analyses on partially encased composite columns under concentric loads. The main objective of this study is to evaluate the influence of replacing the conventional longitudinal and transverse steel bars by welded wire mesh on the structural behavior of these members under concentric loads. To achieve these goals experimental tests on four specimens of partially encased composite columns submitted to axial loading were performed and the results were promising in terms of replacing the traditional reinforcement by steel meshes. In addition, a numerical FE model was developed using the software DIANA$^{(R)}$ with FX+. The experimental results were used to validate the numerical model. Satisfactory agreement between experimental and numerical results was observed in both capacity and deformability of the composite columns. Despite of the simplifying assumptions of perfect bond between steel and concrete, the numerical model adequately represented the columns behavior. A finite element parametric study was performed and parameters including thickness of the steel profile and the concrete and steel strengths were evaluated. The parametrical study results found no significant changes in the partially encased columns behavior due to variations of the steel profile thickness or yield strength. However, significant changes in the post peak behavior were observed when using high strength concrete and these results suggest a change in the failure mode.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.43 no.4
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• pp.511-522
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• 2022

An experimental investigation to study the behaviour of connections between cold-formed steel (CFS) joist and plywood structural panel is presented in this paper. Material testing on CFS and plywood was carried out to assess their mechanical properties and behaviour. Push-out tests were conducted to determine the slip modulus and failure modes of three different shear connection types. The employed shear connectors in the study were; size 14 (6mm diameter) self-drilling screw, M12 coach screw, and M12 nut and bolt. The effective bending stiffness of composite cold-formed steel and plywood T-beam assembly is calculated based on the slip modulus values computed from push-out tests. The effective bending stiffness was increased by 25.5%, 18% and 30.2% for self-drilling screw, coach screw, nut and bolt, respectively, over the stiffness of cold-formed steel joist alone. This finding suggests the potential to enhance the structural performance of composite cold-formed steel and timber flooring system by mobilisation of composite action present between timber sheathing and CFS joist.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.47 no.3
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• pp.339-353
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• 2023

The primary objective of the current study is to optimize and evaluate the seismic performance of steel momentresisting frame (MRF) structures considering soil-structure interaction (SSI) effects. The structural optimization is implemented in the context of performance-based design in accordance with FEMA-350 at different confidence levels from 50% to 90% by taking into account fixed- and flexible-base conditions using an efficient metaheuristic algorithm. Nonlinear response-history analysis (NRHA) is conducted to evaluate the seismic response of structures, and the beam-on-nonlinear Winkler foundation (BNWF) model is used to simulate the soil-foundation interaction under the MRFs. The seismic performance of optimally designed fixed- and flexible-base steel MRFs are compared in terms of overall damage index, seismic collapse safety, and interstory drift ratios at different performance levels. Two illustrative examples of 6- and 12-story steel MRFs are presented. The results show that the consideration of SSI in the optimization process of 6- and 12-story steel MRFs results in an increase of 1.0 to 9.0 % and 0.5 to 5.0 % in structural weight and a slight decrease in structural seismic safety at different confidence levels.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.89 no.3
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• pp.239-252
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• 2024

Steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) are classified as lateral load-resisting systems. The feasibility of openings in the steel plate is a characteristic of SPSWs. The use of openings in SPSWs can lower the load capacity, stiffness, and energy dissipation. This study proposes a novel form of SPSWs that provides convenient access through openings by combining steel plates and eccentrically braced frames (EBFs). The proposed system also avoids a substantial reduction in the strength and stiffness. Hence, various geometric forms were analyzed through two different structural approaches. Groups 1, 2, and 3 included a steel EBF with a steel plate between the column and EBF in order to improve system performance. In Group 4, the proposed system was evaluated within an SPSW with openings and an EBF on the opening edge. To evaluate the performance of the proposed systems, the nonlinear finite element method (NL-FEM) was employed under cyclic loading. The hysteresis (load-drift) curve, stress contour, stiffness, and damping were evaluated as the structural outputs. The numerical models indicated that local buckling within the middle plate-EBF connection prevented a diagonal tension field. Moreover, in group 4, the EBF and stiffeners on the opening edge enhanced the structural response by approximately 7.5% in comparison with the base SPSW system.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.45 no.6
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• pp.803-819
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• 2013

This paper addresses two main issues relevant to the structural assessment of buildings subjected to explosions. The first issue regards the robustness evaluation of steel frame structures: a procedure is provided for computing "robustness curves" and it is applied to a 20-storey steel frame building, describing the residual strength of the (blast) damaged structure under different local damage levels. The second issue regards the precise evaluation of blast pressures acting on structural elements using Computational Fluid Dynamic (CFD) techniques. This last aspect is treated with particular reference to gas explosions, focusing on some critical parameters (room congestion, failure of non-structural walls and ignition point location) which influence the development of the explosion. From the analyses, it can be deduced that, at least for the examined cases, the obtained robustness curves provide a suitable tool that can be used for risk management and assessment purposes. Moreover, the variation of relevant CFD analysis outcomes (e.g., pressure) due to the variation of the analysis parameters is found to be significant.

• Journal of the Korean Recycled Construction Resources Institute
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.449-457
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• 2023

In this study, the structural limit for concrete was experimentally determined against corrosion of steel. The structural limit was taken as (1) the deformation of concrete at yielding, (2) the maximum pull-out strength and (3) the pull-out strength at the level for uncorroded specimen. Corrosion of steel was accelerated by extracting charges from steel surface to govern degree of steel corrosion. As a result, an increase in the steel diameter resulted in an increase in the corrosion degree to reach the concrete deformation at yielding. Again, an increase in the steel diameter resulted in an increase in the extracted charge to meet the maximum and uncorroded-equivalent level for the bond strength. However, the mass loss was marginally affected by the steel size, reflecting that these parameters could be used to alert the structural limit.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.4
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• pp.569-581
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• 2019

Corrugated steel plate shear wall (CSPSW) as an innovative lateral load resisting system provides various advantages in comparison with the flat steel plate shear wall, including remarkable in-plane and out-of-plane stiffnesses and stability, greater elastic shear buckling stress, increasing the amount of cumulative dissipated energy and maintaining efficiency even in large story drifts. Employment of low yield point (LYP) steel web plate in steel shear walls can dramatically improve their structural performance and prevent early stage instability of the panels. This paper presents a comprehensive structural performance assessment of corrugated low yield point steel plate shear walls having circular openings located in different positions. Accordingly, following experimental verification of CSPSW finite element models, several trapezoidally horizontal CSPSW (H-CSPSW) models having LYP steel web plates as well as circular openings (for ducts) perforated in various locations have been developed to explore their hysteresis behavior, cumulative dissipated energy, lateral stiffness, and ultimate strength under cyclic loading. Obtained results reveal that the rehabilitation of damaged steel shear walls using corrugated LYP steel web plate can enhance their structural performance. Furthermore, choosing a suitable location for the circular opening regarding the design purpose paves the way for the achievement of the shear wall's optimal performance.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.51-57
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• 2003

Current steel-framed building design codes are based on theoretical and experimental researches on the conventional structural steel. However, the yield phenomenon of austenitic stainless steel, which is characterized by continuous yielding, is quite different from that of conventional structural steel. The offset strength, which should determine the design strength, may affect the limits of width-thickness ratio of current design codes. Stub column test results showed that the limits of width-thickness ratio satisfied both ASD and LRFD codes when 0.2% offset strength was regarded as design strength. In addition, the local buckling strengths of all stainless steel stub columns did not decrease rapidly compared with those of conventional structural steel columns, even though the width-thickness ratio exceeded the design limit.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.48 no.4
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• pp.569-585
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• 2013

The use of the rigid polyurethane foam (RPF) to strengthen sandwich structures against blast terror has great interests from engineering experts in structural retrofitting. The aim of this study is to use the RPF to strengthen sandwich steel structure under blast load. The sandwich steel structure is assembled to study the RPF as structural retrofitting. The filed blast test is conducted. The finite element analysis (FEA) is also used to model the sandwich steel structure under shock wave. The sandwich steel structure performance is studied based on detonating different TNT explosive charges. There is a good agreement between the results obtained by both the field blast test and the numerical model. The RPF improves the sandwich steel structure performance under the blast wave propagation.