• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.747-753
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• 2019

Metaheuristic algorithm is used to solve the weight minimization problem of truss structures considering shape, and sizing design variables. The cross-sectional areas of the line element in trusses are the design variables for size optimization and the changeable joint coordinates are the shape optimization used in this study. The design of plane and spatial truss structures are optimized by metaheuristic technique named Teaching-Learning-Based Optimization (TLBO). Finite element analyses of structures and optimization process are carried out by the computer program visually developed by the authors coded in MATLAB. The four benchmark problems (trusses 2D ten-bar, 3D thirty-seven-bar, 3D seventy-two-bar and 2D two-hundred-bar) taken from literature are optimized and the optimal solution compared the results given by previous studies.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.385-403
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• 2015

This paper presents the status improvement of an old damaged deck type rural road steel truss bridge through the modal parametric study after partial retrofitting. The dynamic and static tests on bridge were carried out as in damaged state and after partial retrofitting. The dynamic testing on the steel bridge was carried out using accelerometers under similar environmental conditions with same speed of the moving vehicle. The comparison of the modal parameters i.e., frequency, mode shape mode shape curvature, modal strain energy, along with the deflection parameter are studied with respect to structural analytical model parameters. The status up gradation for the upper and downstream truss obtained was different due to differential level of damage in the bridge. Also after retrofitting the structural elemental behavior obtained was not same as desired. The damage level obtained through static tests carried out using total station indicated further retrofitting requirement.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.20 no.5
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• pp.605-616
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• 2017

Concrete filled steel tubular (CFST) composite girder is a new type of structures for bridge constructions. The existing design codes cannot be used to predict the thermal stress in the CFST truss girder structures under solar radiation. This study is to develop the temperature gradient curves for predicting thermal stress of the structure based on field and laboratory monitoring data. An in-field testing had been carried out on Ganhaizi Bridge for over two months. Thermal couples were installed at the cross section of the CFST truss girder and the continuous data was collected every 30 minutes. A typical temperature gradient mode was then extracted by comparing temperature distributions at different times. To further verify the temperature gradient mode and investigate the evolution of temperature fields, an outdoor experiment was conducted on a 1:8 scale bridge model, which was installed with both thermal couples and strain gauges. The main factors including solar radiation and ambient temperature on the different positions were studied. Laboratory results were consistent with that from the in-field data and temperature gradient curves were obtained from the in-field and laboratory data. The relationship between the strain difference at top and bottom surfaces of the concrete deck and its corresponding temperature change was also obtained and a method based on curve fitting was proposed to predict the thermal strain under elevated temperature. The thermal stress model for CFST composite girder was derived. By the proposed model, the thermal stress was obtained from the temperature gradient curves. The results using the proposed model were agreed well with that by finite element modelling.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.15-26
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• 2009

Push-out tests were performed to evaluate the shear capacity of a composite steel truss deck slab system, called an automatic prefabrication bar-mesh system, using lightweight concrete. The six specimens were classified into three groups: DP, NDP, and Solid, according to the variations between the bar mesh and the zinc plate automatic prefabrications. This paper focused on the failure behaviors, load-displacement characteristics, and a performance comparison based on design codes.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.303-312
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• 2007

Steel box girder bridges are being commonly designed for medium-span bridges of span length. Composite truss bridges with steel diagonals instead of concrete webs can be an excellent design alternative, because it can reduce the dead weight of superstructures. One of the key issues in the design of composite truss bridges is the joint structureconnecting the diagonal steel members with the upper and lower concrete slabs. Because the connection has to carry concentrated combined loads and the design provisions for the joint are not clear, it is necessary to investigate the load transfer mechanism and the design methods for each limit state. There are various connection details according to the types of diagonal members. In this paper, the joint structure with group stud connectors welded on a gusset plate is used. Push-out tests for the group stud connectors of were performed. The test results showed that the current design codes on the ultimate strength ofthe stud connection can be used when the required minimum spacing of stud connectors is satisfied. Flexure-shear tests were conducted to verify the applicability of the design provisions for combined load effects to the strength of joint structures. To increase the pullout strength of the connection, bent studs were proposed and utilized for the edge studs in the group arrangement of the joint. The results showed that the details of the joint structure were enhanced. Thereafter, design guidelines were proposed.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.463-479
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• 2020

Currently, there are many lateral resisting systems utilized in resisting lateral loads being produced in an earthquake. Such systems can significantly reduce the roof's displacement when placed at an optimum location. Since in the design of tall buildings, the minimum distance between adjacent buildings is important. In this paper, the critical excitation method is used to determine the best location of the belt truss system while calculating the minimum required distance between two adjacent buildings. For this purpose, the belt truss system is placed at a specific story. Then the critical earthquakes are computed so that the considered constraints are satisfied, and the value of roof displacement is maximized. This procedure is repeated for all stories; i.e., for each, a critical acceleration is computed. From this set of computed roof displacement values, the story with the least displacement is selected as the best location for the belt truss system. Numerical studies demonstrate that absolute roof displacements induced through critical accelerations range between 5.36 to 1.95 times of the San Fernando earthquake for the first example and 7.67 to 1.22 times of the San Fernando earthquake for the second example. This method can also be used to determine the minimum required distance between two adjacent buildings to eliminate the pounding effects. For this purpose, this value is computed based on different standard codes and compared with the results of the critical excitation method to show the ability of the proposed method.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.379-395
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• 2013

Aim of this paper is to apply to a steel truss bridge a methodology that takes into account the consequences of extreme loads on structures, focusing on the influence that the loss of primary elements has on the structural load bearing capacity. In this context, the topic of structural robustness, intended as the capacity of a structure to withstand damages without suffering disproportionate response to the triggering causes while maintaining an assigned level of performance, becomes relevant. In the first part of this study, a brief literature review of the topics of structural robustness, collapse resistance and progressive collapse takes place, focusing on steel structures. In the second part, a procedure for the evaluation of the structural response and robustness of skeletal structures under impact loads is presented and tested in simple structures. Following that, an application focuses on a case study bridge, the extensively studied I-35W Minneapolis steel truss bridge. The bridge, which had a structural design particularly sensitive to extreme loads, recently collapsed for a series of other reasons, in part still under investigation. The applied method aims, in addition to the robustness assessment, at increasing the collapse resistance of the structure by testing alternative designs.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.19 no.2
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• pp.263-275
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• 2015

This study presents conceptual information of newly optimized shapes and connectivity of the so-called outrigger truss system for modern tall buildings that resists lateral loads induced by wind and earthquake forces. In practice, the outrigger truss consists of triangular or Vierendeel types to stiffen tall buildings, and the decision of outrigger design has been qualitatively achieved by only engineers' experience and intuition, including information of structural behaviors, although outrigger shapes and the member's connectivity absolutely affect building stiffness, the input of material, construction ability and so on. Therefore the design of outrigger trusses needs to be measured and determined according to scientific proofs like reliable optimal design tools. In this study, at first the shape and connectivity of an outrigger truss system are visually evaluated by using a conceptual design tool of the classical topology optimization method, and then are quantitatively investigated with respect to a structural safety as stiffness, an economical aspect as material quantity, and construction characteristics as the number of member connection. Numerical applications are studied to verify the effectiveness of the proposed design process to generate a new shape and connectivity of the outrigger for both static and dynamic responses.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Railway
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• v.10 no.5
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• pp.600-606
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• 2007

3D finite element analyses of a corrugated steel web girder and a steel truss web girder are conducted to investigate the static and dynamic behaviour of the hybrid girders. And the analyses results are compared with those by the equivalent beam theory. The equivalent theory is a theory that all section properties of a truss structure are replaced by section properties of a beam including a shear coefficient. When applying the equivalent beam theory, the shear coefficient of the corrugated steel web girder is estimated as the area ratio of flange section to web section and that of the steel truss web girder is calculated by the equation proposed by Abdel. Static deflections and natural frequencies by 3D finite element analyses and those by the equivalent beam theory are in good agreement.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.443-454
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• 2019

With the aim to put forward the analytical model for calculating the shear capacity of precast steel reinforced concrete (PSRC) beams, a static test on two full-scale PSRC specimens was conducted under four-point loading, and the failure modes and strain developments of the specimens were critically investigated. Based on the test results, a modified truss-arch model was proposed to analyze the shear mechanisms of PSRC and cast-in-place SRC beams. In the proposed model, the overall shear capacity of PSRC and cast-in-place SRC beams can be obtained by combining the shear capacity of encased steel shape with web concrete determined by modified Nakamura and Narita model and the shear capacity of reinforced concrete part determined by compatible truss-arch model which can consider both the contributions of concrete and stirrups to shear capacity in the truss action as well as the contribution of arch action through compatibility of deformation. Finally, the proposed model is compared with other models from JGJ 138 and AISC 360 using the available SRC beam test data consisting of 75 shear-critical PSRC and SRC beams. The results indicate that the proposed model can improve the accuracy of shear capacity predictions for shear-critical PSRC and cast-in-place SRC beams, and relatively conservative results can be obtained by the models from JGJ 138 and AISC 360.