• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.12 no.3_4
• /
• pp.363-379
• /
• 2013

Dynamic displacement of structures is an important index for in-service structural condition and behavior assessment, but accurate measurement of structural displacement for large-scale civil structures such as long-span bridges still remains as a challenging task. In this paper, a vision-based dynamic displacement measurement system with the use of digital image processing technology is developed, which is featured by its distinctive characteristics in non-contact, long-distance, and high-precision structural displacement measurement. The hardware of this system is mainly composed of a high-resolution industrial CCD (charge-coupled-device) digital camera and an extended-range zoom lens. Through continuously tracing and identifying a target on the structure, the structural displacement is derived through cross-correlation analysis between the predefined pattern and the captured digital images with the aid of a pattern matching algorithm. To validate the developed system, MTS tests of sinusoidal motions under different vibration frequencies and amplitudes and shaking table tests with different excitations (the El-Centro earthquake wave and a sinusoidal motion) are carried out. Additionally, in-situ verification experiments are performed to measure the mid-span vertical displacement of the suspension Tsing Ma Bridge in the operational condition and the cable-stayed Stonecutters Bridge during loading tests. The obtained results show that the developed system exhibits an excellent capability in real-time measurement of structural displacement and can serve as a good complement to the traditional sensors.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
• /
• v.22 no.2
• /
• pp.141-147
• /
• 2018

In this study, a cyclic loading test was carried out for a reinforced concrete frame installed a TS(tension-spring) damper for the purpose of verifying the seismic strengthening effect of the TS seismic reinforcing method. The test specimens are four specimens of non - reinforced frame and three reinforced frame specimens. Experimental parameters are Shape of damper and construction method of damper. As a result, the construction method of inserting type inside window was twice as much in terms of strength and stiffness, and the method of externally attached type showed a performance improvement of about 2 times in terms of energy dissipation. From these results, it can be confirmed that the TS seismic reinforcing method is a superior method for field application and seismic strengthening.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
• /
• v.7 no.4
• /
• pp.191-199
• /
• 2003

The inelastic response of many structural steel and reinforced concrete structures subject to extreme loadings can be characterized by elastoplastic behaviors. Although excursion beyond the elastic range is usually not permitted under normal conditions of service, the extent of permanent damage a structure may sustain when subjected to extreme conditions, such as severe blast or earthquake loading, is frequently of interest to the engineer. A blast is usually the result of an explosion defined as a "sudden expansion". This paper discusses the basic concept that defines blast loadings on structures and corresponding elastoplastic structural response (displacement, velocity, and acceleration) and try to explain a crack propagation of concrete in sudden expansion. According to nonlinear finite element analysis, the crack forms of static and dynamic states displayed different in RC structural members. This paper also provides useful data for the dynamic fracture analysis of RC frame structures.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.16 no.1
• /
• pp.163-181
• /
• 2015

This research investigates the structural health monitoring of nonlinear structures after a major seismic event. It considers the identification of flag-shaped or pinched hysteresis behavior in response to structures as a more general case of a normal hysteresis curve without pinching. The method is based on the overall least squares methods and the log likelihood ratio test. In particular, the structural response is divided into different loading and unloading sub-half cycles. The overall least squares analysis is first implemented to obtain the minimum residual mean square estimates of structural parameters for each sub-half cycle with the number of segments assumed. The log likelihood ratio test is used to assess the likelihood of these nonlinear segments being true representations in the presence of noise and model error. The resulting regression coefficients for identified segmented regression models are finally used to obtain stiffness, yielding deformation and energy dissipation parameters. The performance of the method is illustrated using a single degree of freedom system and a suite of 20 earthquake records. RMS noise of 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% is added to the response data to assess the robustness of the identification routine. The proposed method is computationally efficient and accurate in identifying the damage parameters within 10% average of the known values even with 20% added noise. The method requires no user input and could thus be automated and performed in real-time for each sub-half cycle, with results available effectively immediately after an event as well as during an event, if required.

• Land and Housing Review
• /
• v.12 no.3
• /
• pp.97-108
• /
• 2021

In bridge abutment structures, lateral squeeze due to lateral stress of embankment placement and thermal movement of the bridge structure leads to failure of approach slabs, girders, and bridge bearings. Recently, GRS (Geosynthetic-Reinforced Soil) integral bridge has been proposed as a new countermeasure. The GRS integral bridge is a combining structure of a GRS retaining wall and an integral abutment bridge. In this study, numerical analyses which considered construction sequences and earthquake loading conditions are performed to compare the behaviors of conventional PSC (Pre-Stressed Concrete) girder bridge, traditional GRS integral bridge structure and GRS integral bridge with bracket structures (newly developed LH-type GRS integral bridge). The analysis results show that the GRS integral bridge with bracket structures is most stable compared with the others in an aspect of stress concentration and deformation on foundation ground including differential settlements between abutment and backfill. Furthermore, the GRS integral bridge with/without bracket structures was found to show the best performance in terms of seismic stability.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.17 no.3
• /
• pp.297-306
• /
• 2019

The extension of existing RC buildings is a challenging process, which requires efficient connection between existing and new materials to guarantee load transferring between the lap-spliced longitudinal columns' reinforcement. Therefore, the length of the columns' starter bars is a crucial factor, which decisively affects the seismic response of the new columns. In particular, when the length of the starter bars is short, then the length of the lap splices of reinforcement is inadequate to ensure load transfer between steel bars and concrete, with an indisputable detrimental impact on the seismic behaviour of the columns. Moreover, in most of the existing RC buildings the column starter bars are of particularly short length, while they have probably been bent, cut or corroded. In the present study, the effectiveness of both welded rebar and mechanical splices of reinforcement in ensuring load transferring between the starter bars and the longitudinal reinforcement of the new column was experimentally evaluated. Four cantilever column subassemblages were constructed and subjected to earthquake-type loading. Three of the specimens were used to examine different types of shielded metal arc welding (SMAW), while in the fourth subassemblage mechanical splices were tested. The hysteretic response of the columns was evaluated and compared to the behaviour of a fifth specimen with continuous reinforcement, tested by Kalogeropoulos and Tsonos (2019). Test results clearly demonstrated that the examined types of SMAW were equally satisfactory in ensuring the ductile seismic performance of the columns, while the mechanical splices found to be more susceptible to exhibit slipping of the bars.

• International journal of steel structures
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.1210-1218
• /
• 2018

A new type of earthquake-resisting element that consists of a steel plate shear wall with slits is introduced. The infill steel plate is divided into a series of vertical flexural links with vertical links. The steel plate shear walls absorb energy by means of in-plane bending deformation of the flexural links and the energy dissipation capacity of the plastic hinges formed at both ends of the flexural links when under lateral loads. In this paper, finite element analysis and experimental studies at low cyclic loadings were conducted on specimens with steel plate shear walls with multilayer slits. The effects caused by varied slit pattern in terms of slit design parameters on lateral stiffness, ultimate bearing capacity and hysteretic behavior of the shear walls were analyzed. Results showed that the failure mode of steel plate shear walls with a single-layer slit was more likely to be out-of-plane buckling of the flexural links. As a result, the lateral stiffness and the ultimate bearing capacity were relatively lower when the precondition of the total height of the vertical slits remained the same. Differently, the failure mode of steel plate shear walls with multilayer slits was prone to global buckling of the infill steel plates; more obvious tensile fields provided evidence to the fact of higher lateral stiffness and excellent ultimate bearing capacity. It was also concluded that multilayer specimens exhibited better energy dissipation capacity compared with single-layer plate shear walls.

• Smart Structures and Systems
• /
• v.26 no.6
• /
• pp.693-701
• /
• 2020

The conventional Kalman Filter (KF) provides a promising way for structural state estimation. However, the physical parameters of structural systems or models should be available for the estimation. Moreover, it is not applicable when the loadings applied to the structures are unknown. To circumvent the aforementioned limitations, a two-stage KF with unknown input approach is proposed for the simultaneous identification of structural parameters and unknown loadings. In stage 1, a modified observation equation is employed. The structural state vector is estimated by KF on the basis of structural parameters identified at the previous time-step. Then, the unknown input is identified by Least Squares Estimation (LSE). In stage 2, based on the concept of sensitivity matrix, the structural parameters are updated at the current time-step by using the estimated structural states obtained from stage 1. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is numerically validated via a five-story shearing model under random and earthquake excitations. Shaking table tests on a five-story structure are also employed to demonstrate the performance of the proposed approach. It is demonstrated from numerical and experimental results that the proposed approach can be used for the identification of parameters of structure and the external force applied to it with acceptable accuracy.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
• /
• v.38 no.1
• /
• pp.17-33
• /
• 2022

This study describes the effect of ground water table on the dynamic analysis of single piles subjected to earthquake loading. The dynamic numerical analysis was performed for different dry and saturated soils with varying the relative densities of surrounding weathered soils (SM). The test soil was a weathered soil encountered in the engineering field and bender element tests were conducted to estimate the dynamic properties of test soil. The Mohr-Coulomb model and Finn model were used for soil, dry and saturated conditions, respectively. These models validated with results of centrifuge tests. When compared with the results from the soil conditions, saturated cases showed more lateral displacement and bending moment of piles than dry cases, and this difference caused from the generation of excess porewater pressure. It means that the kinematic effect of the soil decreased as the excess pore water pressure was generated, and it was changed to the inertial behavior of the pile.

• Steel and Composite Structures
• /
• v.43 no.3
• /
• pp.327-340
• /
• 2022

A vast amount of experimental and analytical research has been conducted related to the seismic behavior and performance of concrete filled steel tubular (CFT) columns. This research has resulted in a wealth of information on the component behavior. However, analytical and experimental data for structural systems with CFT columns is limited, and the well-known behavior of steel or concrete structures is assumed valid for designing these systems. This paper presents the development of an analytical model for nonlinear analysis of composite moment resisting frame (CFT-MRF) systems with CFT columns and steel wide-flange (WF) beams under seismic loading. The model integrates component models for steel WF beams, CFT columns, connections between CFT columns and WF beams, and CFT panel zones. These component models account for nonlinear behavior due to steel yielding and local buckling in the beams and columns, concrete cracking and crushing in the columns, and yielding of panel zones and connections. Component tests were used to validate the component models. The model for a CFT-MRF considers second order geometric effects from the gravity load bearing system using a lean-on column. The experimental results from the testing of a four-story CFT-MRF test structure are used as a benchmark to validate the modeling procedure. An analytical model of the test structure was created using the modeling procedure and imposed-displacement analyses were used to reproduce the tests with the analytical model of the test structure. Good agreement was found at the global and local level. The model reproduced reasonably well the story shear-story drift response as well as the column, beam and connection moment-rotation response, but overpredicted the inelastic deformation of the panel zone.