• Computers and Concrete
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• v.22 no.3
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• pp.305-317
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• 2018

Steel reinforced Engineered Cementitious Composite (ECC) components have been proposed for seismic structural applications, for example in coupling beams, infill panels, joints, columns, and flexural members. The development of strain in the steel reinforcement of cementitious components has been shown to vary based on both the steel reinforcement ratio and the applied deformation history. Strain in the steel reinforcement of reinforced ECC components is an important structural response metric because ultimate failure is often by fracture of the steel reinforcement. A recently proposed bond-slip model has been successfully calibrated to cyclically tested reinforced ECC beams wherein the deformation history contained monotonically increasing cycles. This paper reports simulations of two-dimensional finite element models of reinforced ECC beams to determine the appropriateness and significance of altering a phenomenological bond-slip model based on the applied deformation history. The numerical simulations with various values of post-peak bond-slip softening stiffness are compared to experimental results. Varying the post-peak bond-slip softening stiffness had little effect on the cracking patterns and hysteretic response of the reinforced ECC flexural models tested, which consisted of two different steel reinforcement ratios subjected to two different deformation histories. Varying the post-peak bond-slip softening stiffness did, however, affect the magnitude of strain and the length of reinforcing bar that strain-hardened. Overall, a numerical model with a constant bond-slip model represented well various responses in reinforced ECC beams with multiple steel reinforcement ratios subjected to different deformation histories.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.1223-1240
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• 2014

Seismic isolation has been established as an effective earthquake-resistant design method and the lead rubber bearings (LRBs) are among the most commonly used seismic isolation systems. In the scientific literature, a sharp bilinear model is often used for capturing the hysteretic behaviour of the LRBs in the analysis of seismically isolated structures, although the actual behaviour of the LRBs can be more accurately represented utilizing smoothed plasticity, as captured by the Bouc-Wen model. Discrepancies between these two models are quantified in terms of the computed peak relative displacements at the isolation level, as well as the peak inter-storey deflections and the absolute top-floor accelerations, for the case of base-isolated buildings modelled as multi degree-of-freedom systems. Numerical simulations under pulse-like ground motions have been performed to assess the effect of non-linear parameters of the seismic isolation system and characteristics of both the superstructure and the earthquake excitation, on the accuracy of the computed peak structural responses. Through parametric analyses, this paper assesses potential inaccuracies of the computed peak seismic response when the sharp bilinear model is employed for modelling the LRBs instead of the more accurate and smoother Bouc-Wen model.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.63-71
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• 2018

This paper reports an experimental study that was accomplished to assess the seismic behavior of steel tube reinforced concrete bridge columns (SBCs). The motivation of this study was to verify a supposition that the core steel tube may be terminated at a rational position in the column to minimize the material cost while maintaining the seismic behavior of this composite column. Four SBC specimens were tested under combined constant axial load and cyclic reversed lateral loads. The unique variable in the test matrix was the core steel tube embedment length, which ranged from 1/3 to 3/3 of the column effective height. It is observed that SBCs showed two distinctly different failure patterns, namely brittle shear failure and ductile flexural failure. Tests results indicate that the hysteretic responses of SBCs were susceptible to the core steel tube embedment length. With the increase of this structural parameter, the lateral strength of SBC was progressively improved; the deformability and ductility, however, exhibited a tendency of first increase and then decrease. It is also found that in addition to maintained the rate of stiffness degradation and cumulative energy dissipation basically unchanged, both the ductility and deformability of SBC were significantly improved when the core steel tube was terminated at the mid-height of the column, and these were the most unexpected benefits accompanied with material cost reduction.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.399-411
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• 2018

The difficulty in modeling complex nonlinear structures lies in the presence of significant sources of uncertainties mainly attributed to sudden changes in the structure's behavior caused by regular aging factors or extreme events. Quantifying these uncertainties and accurately representing them within the complex mathematical framework of Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) are significantly essential for system identification and damage detection purposes. This study highlights the importance of uncertainty quantification in SHM frameworks, and presents a comparative analysis between intrusive and non-intrusive techniques in quantifying uncertainties for SHM purposes through two different variations of the Kalman Filter (KF) method, the Ensemble Kalman filter (EnKF) and the Polynomial Chaos Kalman Filter (PCKF). The comparative analysis is based on a numerical example that consists of a four degrees-of-freedom (DOF) system, comprising Bouc-Wen hysteretic behavior and subjected to El-Centro earthquake excitation. The comparison is based on the ability of each technique to quantify the different sources of uncertainty for SHM purposes and to accurately approximate the system state and parameters when compared to the true state with the least computational burden. While the results show that both filters are able to locate the damage in space and time and to accurately estimate the system responses and unknown parameters, the computational cost of PCKF is shown to be less than that of EnKF for a similar level of numerical accuracy.

• Elastomers and Composites
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.121-130
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• 2004

A rubber bushing connects the components of the vehicle each other and reduce the vibration transmitted to the chassis frame. A rubber bushing has the nonlinear characteristics for both the amplitude and the frequency and represents the hysteretic responses under the periodic excitation. In this paper, one-axis durability test is performed to describe the mechanical behavior of typical vehicle elastomeric components. The results of the tests are used to develop m empirical bushing model with an artificial neural network. The back propagation algerian is used to obtain the weighting factor of the neural network. A numerical example is carried out to verify the developed bushing model and the vehicle simulation is performed to show the fidelity of proposed model.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.11 no.1
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• pp.71-87
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• 2001

A frequency domain response analysis is presented for building frames passively controlled by viscoelastic dampers, under harmonic ground excitation. Three different models are used to represent the linear dynamic force-deformation characteristics of viscoelastic dampers namely, Kelvin model, Linear hysteretic model and Maxwell model. The frequency domain solution is obtained by (i) an iterative pseudo-force method, which uses undamped mode shapes and frequencies of the system, (ii) an approximate modal strain energy method, which uses an equivalent modal damping of the system in each mode of vibration, and (iii) an exact method which uses complex frequency response function of the system. The responses obtained by three different methods are compared for different combinations of viscoelastic dampers giving rise to both classically and non-classically damped cases. In addition, the effect of the modelling of viscoelastic dampers on the response is investigated for a certain frequency range of interest. The results of the study are useful in appropriate modelling of viscoelastic dampers and in understanding the implication of using modal analysis procedure for building frames which are passively controlled by viscoelastic dampers against base excitation.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.57 no.5
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• pp.809-821
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• 2016

Concentric-tube continuum robots have formed an active field of research in robotics because of their manipulative exquisiteness essential to facilitate delicate surgical procedures. A set of concentric tubes with designed initial curvatures comprises a robot whose workspace can be controlled by relative translations and rotations of the tubes. Kinematic models have been widely used to predict the movement of the robot, but they are incapable of describing its time-dependent hysteretic behaviors accurately particularly when snapping occurs. To overcome this limitation, here we present a finite element modeling approach to investigating the dynamics of concentric-tube continuum robots. In our model, each tube is discretized using MITC shell elements and its transient responses are computed implicitly using the Bathe time integration method. Inter-tube contacts, the key actuation mechanism of this robot, are modeled using the constraint function method with contact damping to capture the hysteresis in robot trajectories. Performance of the proposed method is demonstrated by analyzing three specifications of two-tube robots including the one exhibiting snapping phenomena while the method can be applied to multiple-tube robots as well.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.435-445
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• 2019

The collapses of curved bridges are mainly caused by the damaged columns, subjected to the combined loadings of axial load, shear force, flexural moment and torsional moment, under earthquakes. However, these combined loadings have not been fully investigated. This paper firstly investigated the mechanical characteristics of the bending-torsion coupling effects, based on the seismic response spectrum analysis of 24 curved bridge models. And then 9 reinforced concrete (RC) and circular column specimens were tested, by changing the bending-tortion ratio (M/T), axial compression ratio, longitudinal reinforcement ratio and spiral reinforcement ratio, respectively. The results show that the bending-torsion coupling effects of piers are more significant, along with the decrease of girder curvature and the increase of pier height. The M/T ratio ranges from 6 to 15 for common cases, and influences the crack distribution, plastic zone and hysteretic curve of piers. And these seismic characteristics are also influenced by the compression ratio, longitudinal reinforcement ratio and spiral reinforcement ratios of piers.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.123-132
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• 2021

Deficient beam-column joints of reinforced concrete (RC) structures designed to older practices and codes often lead to destructive local or global failures. A strengthening technique for these joints based on the use of the new and innovative Carbon-FRP (C-FRP) ropes is presented and investigated. The C-FRP ropes are diagonally placed in superficial notches on the two sides of the joint. Two full scale external substandard joint subassemblages with the same characteristics, one unstrengthened and one strengthened with diagonally applied C-FRP ropes, are constructed and tested in cyclic loading. Special attention has been given to the elaboration of the acquired test measurements. The extracted conclusions are based on the comparative study of the hysteretic responses of the specimens, the observed maximum load envelopes, the comparisons of the joint body shear deformations as measured using diagonally mounted LVTDs, the calculated nominal principal stresses developed in the joint regions, the assessed joint damage as expressed by the damage index by Park and Ang and finally the calculated values of the equivalent damping ratio. From these comparisons it is concluded that application of diagonally mounted C-FRP ropes on the two sides of the joint body of exterior connections is an efficient easy-to-apply technique for the strengthening of substandard RC joints.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.49-59
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• 2020

Precast concrete elements in accelerated bridge construction (ABC) extends from superstructure to substructure, precast pile foundation has proven a benefit for regions with fragile ecological environment and adverse geological condition. There is still a lack of knowledge of the seismic behavior and performance of the precast pile foundation. In this study, a 1/8 scaled model of precast pile foundation with elevated cap is fabricated for quasi-static test. The failure mechanism and responses of the precast pile-soil interaction system are analyzed. It is shown that damage occurs primarily in precast pile-soil interaction system and the bridge pier keeps elastic state because of its relatively large cross-section designed for railways. The vulnerable part of the precast pile with elevated cap is located at the embedded section, but no plastic hinge forms along the pile depth under cyclic loading. Hysteretic curves show no significant strength degradation but obvious stiffness degradation throughout the loading process. The energy dissipation capacity of the precast pile-soil interaction system is discussed by using index of the equivalent viscous damping ratio. It can be found that the energy dissipation capacity decreases with the increase of loading displacement due to the unyielding pile reinforcements and potential pile uplift. It is expected to promote the use of precast pile foundation in accelerated bridge construction (ABC) of railways designed in seismic regions.