• International Journal of Concrete Structures and Materials
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.225-238
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• 2013

In this study, a two-layer feed-forward neural network was constructed and applied to determine a mapping associating mix design and testing factors of cement-nano silica (NS)-rice husk ash ternary blended concrete samples with their performance in conductance to the water absorption properties. To generate data for the neural network model (NNM), a total of 174 field cores from 58 different mixes at three ages were tested in the laboratory for each of percentage, velocity and coefficient of water absorption and mix volumetric properties. The significant factors (six items) that affect the permeability properties of ternary blended concrete were identified by experimental studies which were: (1) percentage of cement; (2) content of rice husk ash; (3) percentage of 15 nm of $SiO_2$ particles; (4) content of NS particles with average size of 80 nm; (5) effect of curing medium and (6) curing time. The mentioned significant factors were then used to define the domain of a neural network which was trained based on the Levenberg-Marquardt back propagation algorithm using Matlab software. Excellent agreement was observed between simulation and laboratory data. It is believed that the novel developed NNM with three outputs will be a useful tool in the study of the permeability properties of ternary blended concrete and its maintenance.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.419-444
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• 2009

Flange and web local buckling in beam plastic hinge regions of steel moment frames can prevent beam-column connections from achieving adequate plastic rotations under earthquake-induced forces. Reducing the flange-web slenderness ratios (FSR/WSR) of beams is the most effective way in mitigating local member buckling as stipulated in the latest seismic design specifications. However, existing steel moment frame buildings with beams that lack the adequate slenderness ratios set forth for new buildings are vulnerable to local member buckling and thereby system-wise instability prior to reaching the required plastic rotation capacities specified for new buildings. This paper presents results from a research study investigating the cyclic behavior of steel I-beams modified by a welded haunch at the bottom flange and reinforced with glass fiber reinforced polymers at the plastic hinge region. Cantilever I-sections with a triangular haunch at the bottom flange and flange slenderness ratios higher then those stipulated in current design specifications were analyzed under reversed cyclic loading. Beam sections with different depth/width and flange/web slenderness ratios (FSR/WSR) were considered. The effect of GFRP thickness, width, and length on stabilizing plastic local buckling was investigated. The FEA results revealed that the contribution of GFRP strips to mitigation of local buckling increases with increasing depth/width ratio and decreasing FSR and WSR. Provided that the interfacial shear strength of the steel/GFRP bond surface is at least 15 MPa, GFRP reinforcement can enable deep beams with FSR of 8-9 and WSR below 55 to maintain plastic rotations in the order of 0.02 radians without experiencing any local buckling.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.14 no.5
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• pp.847-867
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• 2014

There are continuous efforts to mitigate structural losses from earthquakes and manage risk through seismic risk assessment; seismic fragility curves are widely accepted as an essential tool of such efforts. Seismic fragility curves can be classified into four groups based on how they are derived: empirical, judgmental, analytical, and hybrid. Analytical fragility curves are the most widely used and can be further categorized into two subgroups, depending on whether an analytical function or simulation method is used. Although both methods have shown decent performances for many seismic fragility problems, they often oversimplify the given problems in reliability or structural analyses owing to their built-in assumptions. In this paper, a new method is proposed for the development of seismic fragility curves. Integration with sophisticated software packages for reliability analysis (FERUM) and structural analysis (ZEUS-NL) allows the new method to obtain more accurate seismic fragility curves for less computational cost. Because the proposed method performs reliability analysis using the first-order reliability method, it provides component probabilities as well as useful byproducts and allows further fragility analysis at the system level. The new method was applied to a numerical example of a 2D frame structure, and the results were compared with those by Monte Carlo simulation. The method was found to generate seismic fragility curves more accurately and efficiently. Also, the effect of system reliability analysis on the development of seismic fragility curves was investigated using the given numerical example and its necessity was discussed.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.409-430
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• 2006

The aim of this study is to investigate the reliability of strong motion records processed by causal and acausal Butterworth filters in comparison to the results obtained from a synthetic accelerogram. For this purpose, the fault parallel component of the Bolu record of the Duzce earthquake is modeled with a sum of exponentially damped sinusoidal components. Noise-free velocities and displacements are then obtained by analytically integrating the synthetic acceleration model. The analytical velocity and displacement signals are used as a standard with which to judge the validity of the signals obtained by filtering with causal and acausal filters and numerically integrating the acceleration model. The results show that the acausal filters are clearly preferable to the causal filters due to the fact that the response spectra obtained from the acausal filters match the spectra obtained from the simulated accelerogram better than that obtained by causal filters. The response spectra are independent from the order of the filters and from the method of integration (whether analytical integration after a spline fit to the synthetic accelerogram or the trapezoidal rule). The response spectra are sensitive to the chosen corner frequency of both the causal and the acausal filters and also to the inclusion of the pads. Accurate prediction of the static residual displacement (SRD) is very important for structures traversing faults in the near-fault regions. The greatest adverse effect of the high pass filters is their removal of the SRD. However, the noise-free displacements obtained by double integrating the synthetic accelerogram analytically preserve the SRD. It is thus apparent that conventional high pass filters should not be used for processing near-fault strong-motion records although they can be reliably used for far-fault records if applied acausally. The ground motion parameters such as ARIAS intensity, HUSID plots, Housner spectral intensity and the duration of strong-motion are found to be insensitive to the causality of filters.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.673-692
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• 2016

In the standards, minimum reinforcement ratios are presented as the least reinforcement ratios that bearing elements should have in a way to include all systems and in general. However, naturally these general minimum ratios might be presented as being lower than the normally required reinforcement ratios by criteria such as system size, bearing system arrangement, section situation and distributions of the elements and earthquake effect. In this case, minimum reinforcement ratios may remain as meaningless restrictions. Then grouping the criterion that might affect reinforcement ratios according to certain parameters and creating minimum reinforcement ratios regarding preliminary design will provide ease and safety during the project designing. Moreover, it will enable fast and simple examinations in the beginning of project control and evaluation process. By means of the data which could be defined as "preliminary design & minimum reinforcement ratios", a more realistic and safe restriction compared to general minimum reinforcement ratios could be presented. As a result of numerous comprehensive studies, reinforcement ratios to include all certain systems might be obtained. Today, thanks to the development level of finite elements programs which can make reinforced concrete modelling, with the studies that are impossible to carry out beforehand, this deficiency in the minimum reinforcement ratios in the standarts may at least be partially made up with the advisory regulation of preliminary design & minimum reinforcement ratios. As the structure of the system to be examined and the diversity of the parameters range from the specific to the general, preliminary design & minimum reinforcement ratios will approximate to general minimum reinforcement ratios in real terms. By focusing on a more specific system structure and diversity of the parameters, preliminary design and even design reinforcement ratios will be approximated. In this preliminary study, a route between these two extremes was attempted to be followed. Today, it is possible to determine suggested practical ratios for project designs through carrying out numerous studies.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.5 no.5
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• pp.499-526
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• 2013

Seismic isolation is an effective method for the protection of buildings and their contents during strong earthquakes. This research work aims to assess the appropriateness of the linear and nonlinear models that can be used in the analysis of typical low-rise base isolated steel buildings, taking into account the inherent nonlinearities of the isolation system as well as the potential nonlinearities of the superstructure in case of strong ground motions. The accuracy of the linearization of the isolator properties according to Eurocode 8 is evaluated comparatively with the corresponding response that can be obtained through the nonlinear hysteretic Bouc-Wen constitutive model. The suitability of the linearized model in the determination of the size of the required seismic gap is assessed, under various earthquake intensities, considering relevant methods that are provided by building codes. Furthermore, the validity of the common assumption of elastic behavior for the superstructure is explored and the alteration of the structural response due to the inelastic deformations of the superstructure as a consequence of potential collision to the restraining moat wall is studied. The usage of a nonlinear model for the isolation system is found to be necessary in order to achieve a sufficiently accurate assessment of the structural response and a reliable estimation of the required width of the provided seismic gap. Moreover, the simulations reveal that the superstructure's inelasticity should be taken into account, especially if the response of the structure under high magnitude earthquakes is investigated. The consideration of the inelasticity of the superstructure is also recommended in studies of structural collision of seismically isolated structures to the surrounding moat wall, since it affects the response.

• Structural Monitoring and Maintenance
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• v.5 no.2
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• pp.205-229
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• 2018

Energy induced by minor earthquake and micro vibration cannot be dissipated by traditional buckling-restrained braces (BRBs). To solve this problem, a new type of hybrid passive control device, named as VE-BRB, which is configured by a BRB with high-damping viscoelastic (VE) layers, is developed and studied. Theoretical analysis, performance tests, numerical simulation and case analysis are conducted to study the seismic behavior of VE-BRBs. The results indicate that the combination of hysteretic and damping devices lead to a multi-phased nature and good performance. VE-BRB's working state can be divided into three phases: before yielding of the steel core, VE layers provide sufficient damping ratio to mitigate minor vibrations; after yielding of the steel core, the steel's hysteretic deformations provide supplemental dissipative capacity for structures; after rupture of the steel core, VE layers are still able to work normally and provide multiple security assurance for structures. The simulation results agreed well with the experimental results, validating the finite element analysis method, constitutive models and the identified parameters. The comparison of the time history analysis on a 6-story frame with VE-BRBs and BRBs verified the advantages of VE-BRB for seismic protection of structures compared with traditional BRB. In general, VE-BRB had the potential to provide better control effect on structural displacement and shear in all stages than BRB as expected.

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.107-116
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• 2020

In this paper, the displacement response to seismic loads was analyzed after installing TMD in spatial structures and high-rise buildings. In the case of a spatial structures, since it exhibits complex dynamic behavior under the influence of various vibration modes, it is not possible to effectively control the seismic response by installing only one TMD, unlike ordinary structures. Therefore, after installing eight TMDs in the structure, the correlation between displacement response and mass ratio was examined while changing the mass. The TMD must be designed to have the same frequency as the structure frequency so that the maximum response reduction effect can be exhibited. It can be confirmed that the most important variable is to select the optimal TMD mass in order to install the TMD on the structure and secure excellent control performance against the earthquake load. As a result of analyzing the TMD mass ratio, in the case of high-rise buildings, a mass ratio of 0.4% to 0.6% is preferable. In spatial structures, it is desirable to select a mass ratio of 0.1% to 0.2%. Because this study is based on the theoretical study based on numerical analysis, in order to design a TMD for a real structure, it is necessary to select within a range that does not affect the safety of the structure.

• Journal of Navigation and Port Research
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• v.29 no.8 s.104
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• pp.661-666
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• 2005

Recent warnings indicate that there is a potential risk of massive earthquake. These earthquakes could produce large-scale tsunamis. Consideration of the effect of Tsunami to the moored ship is very important bemuse it brings the loss of life and vast property damage in a viewpoint of ship operations within a harbor. If a tsunami occurs, a ship in a harbor may begin drifting in case of ship entering and departing harbor, and breakage of mooring rope and drifting of moored ship are happened. And extremely serious accident, such as stranding and collision to a quay, might occur. On the other hand, since the tsunami consists of approximately component waves of several minutes, there is a possibility of resonance with the long period motion of mooring vessel. As the speed of Tsunami is much faster than tidal current in a harbor, a strong resisting force might act on the moored ships. In this paper, the numerical simulation procedure in the matter of ship motions due to the attack of large-scale tsunamis are investigated and the effects on the ship motions and mooring loads are evaluated by numerical simulation.

• Proceedings of the Korean Geotechical Society Conference
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• 2006.03a
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• pp.846-853
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• 2006

In this study, quantitative sensitivity analysis on rockfill material influencing the dam crest displacement of Concrete-Faced Rockfill Dam(CFRD) was carried out. The purpose of this study is to indicate the most important input parameter and to show the quantitative variation of displacement at the crest of CFR type dam with this input parameter. The rockfill material properties for parametric study were obtained from the results of large scale triaxial tests on 34 rockfill materials in the 22 different sites. From the statistical analysis on these data, some statistical characteristics of rockfill material properties such as property range, distribution characteristics, and correlation between the properties were investigated. based on these characteristics, 27 property combinations were constituted by Latin Hypercube sampling method. Dam crest displacements after construction, impounding, and earthquake loading were evaluated by static and dynamic numerical analysis on each combination. From the sensitivity analysis, it was found that the crest displacement of CFR type dam was absolutely affected by the shear modulus of rockfill material and the effect of friction angle of it was negligible. This relative difference of sensitivity was more outstanding in case of crest settlement than in case of crest horizontal displacement. Also, it was found that the settlement and horizontal displacement of dam crest logarithmically decreased as the shear modulus increased and the difference between the maximum value and the minimum vale amounted to about 9.5 times in case of settlement and about 10 times in case of horizontal displacement.