• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.477-487
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• 2019

Understanding the behavior of skew bridges under the action of earthquakes is quite challenging due to the combined transverse and longitudinal responses even under unidirectional hit. The main goal of this research is to assess the response of skew bridges when subjected to longitudinal and transversal earthquake loading. The effect of skew on the response considering two- and three- span bridges with skew angles varying from 0 to 60 degrees is illustrated. Various pier fixities (and hence stiffness) and cross-section shapes, as well as different abutment's bearing articulations, are also studied. Finite-element models are established for modal and seismic analyses. Around 900 models are analyzed under the action of the code design response spectrum. $Vis-{\grave{a}}-vis$ modal properties, the higher the skew angle, the less the fundamental period. In addition, it is found that bridges with skew angles less than 30 degrees can be treated as straight bridges for the purpose of calculating modal mass participation factors. Other monitored results are bearings' reactions at abutments, shear and torsion demand in piers, as well as deck longitudinal displacement. Unlike straight bridges, it has been typically noted that skew bridges experience non-negligible torsion and bi-directional pier base shears. In a complementary effort to assess the accuracy of the conducted response spectrum analysis, a series of time-history analyses are applied under seven actual earthquake records scaled to match the code design response spectrum and critical comparisons are performed.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.271-294
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• 2014

In recent years, along with the advances made in performance-based design optimization, the need for fast calculation of response parameters in dynamic analysis procedures has become an important issue. The main problem in this field is the extremely high computational demand of time-history analyses which may convert the solution algorithm to illogical ones. Two simplifying strategies have shown to be very effective in tackling this problem; first, simplified nonlinear modeling investigating minimum level of structural modeling sophistication, second, wavelet analysis of earthquake records decreasing the number of acceleration points involved in time-history loading. In this paper, we try to develop an efficient framework, using both strategies, to solve the performance-based multi-objective optimal design problem considering the initial cost and the seismic damage cost of steel moment-frame structures. The non-dominated sorting genetic algorithm (NSGA-II) is employed as the optimization algorithm to search the Pareto optimal solutions. The constraints of the optimization problem are considered in accordance with Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recommended design specifications. The results from numerical application of the proposed framework demonstrate the capabilities of the framework in solving the present multi-objective optimization problem.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.77 no.6
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• pp.735-744
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• 2021

In recent years, the use of new materials and technologies with the aim of developing high-performing and cost-effective structures has greatly increased. Application of high-strength concrete (HSC) has been found effective in reducing the dimensions of frame members; nonetheless, such reduction in dimensions of structural elements in the most cases may result in the lack of accountability in the tolerable drift capacity. On this basis, strengthening of frame members using fiber reinforced polymers (FRPs) may be deemed as an appropriate remedy to address this issue, which albeit requires comprehensive and systematic investigations. In this paper, the performance of properly-designed, two-dimensional frames made of high-strength concrete and strengthened with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymers (CFRPs) is investigated through detailed numerical simulation. To this end, nonlinear dynamic time history analyses have been performed using the Seismosoft software through application of five scaled earthquake ground motion records. Unstrengthened (bare) and strengthened frames have been analyzed under seismic loading for performance assessment and comparison purposes. The results and findings of this study show that use of CFRP can be quite effective in seismic response improvement of high-strength-concrete structures.

• Nuclear Engineering and Technology
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• v.54 no.5
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• pp.1712-1725
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• 2022

For improving the seismic performance of the nuclear power plant (NPP) piping system, attempts have been made to apply a dynamic absorber (DA). However, the current piping DA design method is limited because it cannot provide the globally optimum values for the target design seismic loading. Therefore, this study proposes a seismic time history analysis-based DA optimal design method for piping. To this end, the Kriging approach is introduced to reduce the numerical cost required for seismic time history analyses. The appropriate design of the experiment method is used to increase the efficiency in securing response data. A gradient-based method is used to efficiently deal with the multi-dimensional unconstrained optimization problem of the DA optimal design. As a result, the proposed method showed an excellent response reduction effect in several responses compared to other optimal design methods. The proposed method showed that the average response reduction rate was about 9% less at the maximum acceleration, about 5% less at the maximum value of the response spectrum, about 9% less at the maximum relative displacement, and about 4% less at the maximum combined stress compared to existing optimal design methods. Therefore, the proposed method enables an effective optimal DA design method for mitigating seismic response in NPP piping in the future.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.115-126
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• 2023

This paper investigates creep analysis of a plate made of Al-SiC functionally graded material using Mendelson's method of successive elastic solution. All mechanical and thermal material properties, except Poisson's ratio, are assumed to be variable along the thickness direction based on the volume fraction of reinforcement and thickness. First, the basic relations of the plate are derived using the Love-Kirchhoff plate theory. The solution of governing equations yields an elastic solution to start creep analysis. The creep behavior is demonstrated through Norton's equation based on Pandey's experimental results extracted for Al-SiC functionally graded material. A linear variation is assumed for temperature distribution along the thickness direction. The creep strain, as well as the thermal strain, are included in the governing equations derived from classical plate theory for mechanical strain. A successive elastic solution based on Mendelson's method is employed to derive the history of stresses, strains, and displacements over a long time. History of stresses and deformations are obtained over a long time to predict damage to the plate because of various loadings, and material composition along the thickness and planar directions.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.28 no.6
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• pp.31-38
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• 2012

In this present study, the long-term consolidation tests were performed using the remolded Kwang-Yang port clayey soil to clarify the effect of stress history and over-consolidation ratio (OCR) on the long-term consolidation characteristics of the soft clayey soil. For the over-consolidated state clayey soils, in case OCR exceeds 1.5, there are no great differences of secondary consolidation settlement and final settlement even if OCR increases from 2.0 to 3.0. Therefore, it has been understood that the value of OCR applied on the field site to reduce the secondary consolidation settlement and the final settlement is about 1.5. In addition, in order to investigate the relationship between the pre-loading period and the characteristics of long-term consolidation behavior obtained from the test results using the remolded Kwang-Yang port clayey soils, the influence on long-term consolidation behavior was not large though the pre-load was unloaded with the consolidation degree 70~80% exceeded.

• Geotechnical Engineering
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.83-102
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• 1994

For estimation of Ko value depending upon the stress history of dry sand, a new type of Ko oedometer apparatus is devised, and the horizontal earth pressure is accurately measured. For this study, 2 types of one-cyclic Ko loading/unloading models have been studied experimentally using four relative densities of the sand. The results obtained in this test are as follows Kon, the coefficient of earth pressure at rest for virgin loading is a function of the angle of internal friction of the sand and is determined as Kon=1-0.914 sin, Kou the coefficient of earth pressure at -rest for virgin unloading is a function of K. and overconsolidation ratio(OCR), and is determined as Kou : Kon(OCR)". The exponent u, increases as the relative density increases. Ko,, the coefficient of earth pressure at rest for virgin reloading decreases in hyperbola type as the vertical stress, cv', increases. And, the stress path at virgin reloading lends to the maximum prestress point, independent upon the value of the minimum unloading stress. The gradient of this curve, mr, increases as OCR increases.ases.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.129-136
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• 2005

The vehicle loading test under the strict traffic control is generally carried out as a present practice in an evaluation process of the bearing capacity of a bridge. The quasi-static load test is recently proposed to mitigate the traffic condition of test, and analyze the disturbed acceleration time-history data of free vibration due to the ambient traffic on the bridge by Fourier transform to calculate only the natural frequencies of the bridge. The calculated frequencies have some errors due to the analysis technique as well as the influence of ambient traffic loads, and in addition to it is cumbersome to obtain the free vibration data during a quasi-static load test. In this study, the wavelet transform technique using Morlet wavelet is used to analyze the acceleration data recorded during a quasi-static load test on a bridge and calculate the natural frequencies and the modal damping ratios of the bridge. The study results show that the wavelet transform technique is a reliable and reasonable method to analyze test data and obtain the natural frequencies and the modal damping ratios of a bridge regardless of the data types i.e. free or forced vibrations.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.14 no.2
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• pp.257-268
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• 1994

An experimental study was carried out to elicit important factors causing cracks and rupture of steel members and their elements under imposed large repeated deformations, and of the quantitative relationships among the important physical factors leading to failure. Each of twenty-eight angles and nine thin-plates served as the specimen and was subjected to repeated axial load after undergoing inelastic buckling. Particular attention was paid to the effects of loading pattern, failure mode and cross-sectional shape on the very-low-cycle failure behavior under loading repetitions of the order of a few to twenty. The experimental results show that energy dissipation capacity depends heavily on the entire history of loading, the failure mode, the slenderness ratio and the width-to-thickness ratio. No simple quantitative relations were observed between the initiation of the visible cracks or rupture and the energy dissipation capacity. The maximum values of residual "net" strains are found to range from 25% to 40%, independent of the test parameters.

• Tunnel and Underground Space
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• v.10 no.1
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• pp.59-69
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• 2000

Acoustic emission is n burst of microseismic waves generated by microscopic failure due to deformation in materials. The study on the detection of initiation and propagation of microcracks from acoustic emission measurement is very important for the evaluation of the stability of underground rock structures by the nondestructive letting method. In this study, acoustic emission was measured under uniaxial stiffness loading test used to obtain the complete stress-strain curves of marble and concrete used as reinforced materials of rock structures. The analysis of acoustic emission parameters and source location were performed to discuss the characteristics of the deformation and failure behavior of rock and concrete. And acoustic emission was measured under cyclic loading test to verify the Kaiser effect associated with the damage of materials, in situ stress of rock, and stress history of concrete structure.