• Journal of the Computational Structural Engineering Institute of Korea
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• v.24 no.4
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• pp.439-447
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• 2011

Longitudinal cracks due to traffic truck loadings that are caused by local deformations of steel orthotropic bridge decks are sometimes observed in the wearing surface. So, underlying causes of the longitudinal pavement crack induced by structural behaviors of steel decks are investigated in this study. For this purpose, The rational finite element model of the steel deck and the pavement having the box girder is developed and a parametric study is performed by varying thickness or elastic modulus ratios of both the steel deck plate and the pavement. As a result, a large tensile strain above the webs of the u-rib and the box girder, which becomes the main cause of the cracks of the pavement, is detected from variation of the normal strain component of the wearing surface in the transverse direction.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.17-34
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• 2022

For steel structures, fatigue cracks are critical damage induced by long-term cycle loading and distortion effects. Vision-based crack detection can be a solution to ensure structural integrity and performance by continuous monitoring and non-destructive assessment. A critical issue is to distinguish cracks from other features in captured images which possibly consist of complex backgrounds such as handwritings and marks, which were made to record crack patterns and lengths during periodic visual inspections. This study presents a parametric study on image-based crack identification for orthotropic steel bridge decks using captured images with complicated backgrounds. Firstly, a framework for vision-based crack segmentation using the atrous convolution-based Deeplapv3+ network (ACDN) is designed. Secondly, features on crack images are labeled to build three databanks by consideration of objects in the backgrounds. Thirdly, evaluation metrics computed from the trained ACDN models are utilized to evaluate the effects of obstacles on crack detection results. Finally, various training parameters, including image sizes, hyper-parameters, and the number of training images, are optimized for the ACDN model of crack detection. The result demonstrated that fatigue cracks could be identified by the trained ACDN models, and the accuracy of the crack-detection result was improved by optimizing the training parameters. It enables the applicability of the vision-based technique for early detecting tiny fatigue cracks in steel structures.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.9 no.6
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• pp.569-584
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• 2009

Corrosion of steel rebars in bridge decks which are faced to harsh conditions, is a common problem in construction industries due to the porosity of concrete. In this research, the behavior of one-way concrete slabs reinforced with Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) molded grating is investigated both theoretically and experimentally. In the analytical method, a closed-form solution for load-deflection behavior of a slab under four-point bending condition is developed by considering a concrete slab as an orthotropic plate and defining stiffness coefficients in principal directions. The available formulation for concrete reinforced with steel is expanded for concrete reinforced with GFRP molded grating to predict ultimate failure load. In finite element modeling, an exact nonlinear behavior of concrete along with a 3-D failure criterion for cracking and crushing are considered in order to estimate the ultimate failure load and the initial cracking load. Eight concrete slabs reinforced with steel and GFRP grating in various thicknesses are also tested to verify the results. The obtained results from the models and experiments are relatively satisfactory.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.23-29
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• 2002

Many of the bridge systems, including the girders and cross-beams, and concrete decks behave as the special orthotropic plates. Such systems with boundary conditions other than Navier or Levy solution types, or with irregular cross sections, analytical solution is very difficult to obtain. Numerical method for eigenvalue problems are also very much involved in seeking such a solution. A method of calculating the natural frequency corresponding to the first mode of vibration of beam and tower structures with irregular cross-sections was developed and reported by Kim in 1974. Recently, this method was extended to two dimensional problems including composite laminates, and has been applied to composite plates with shear deformation effects. In this paper, application of this method to the specially orthotropic laminated plates with various boundary condition is accomplished and the result of analysis is presented.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.799-813
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• 2020

Fatigue cracks of rib-to-deck (RD) joints have been frequently observed in the orthotropic steel decks (OSD) using conventional U-ribs (CU). Thickened edge U-rib (TEU) is proposed to enhance the fatigue strength of RD joints, and its effectiveness has been proved through fatigue tests. In-depth full-scale tests are further carried out to investigate both the fatigue strength and fractography of RD joints. Based on the test result, the mean fatigue strength of TEU specimens is 21% and 17% higher than that of CU specimens in terms of nominal and hot spot stress, respectively. Meanwhile, the development of fatigue cracks has been measured using the strain gauges installed along the welded joint. It is found that such the crack remains almost in semi-elliptical shape during the initiation and propagation. For the further application of TEUs, the design curve under the specific survival rate is required for the RD joints using TEUs. Since the fatigue strength of welded joints is highly scattered, the design curves derived by using the limited test data only are not reliable enough to be used as the reference. On this ground, an experiment-numerical hybrid approach is employed. Basing on the fatigue test, a probabilistic assessment model has been established to predict the fatigue strength of RD joints. In the model, the randomness in material properties, initial flaws and local geometries has been taken into consideration. The multiple-site initiation and coalescence of fatigue cracks are also considered to improve the accuracy. Validation of the model has been rigorously conducted using the test data. By extending the validated model, large-scale databases of fatigue life could be generated in a short period. Through the regression analysis on the generated database, design curves of the RD joint have been derived under the 95% survival rate. As the result, FAT 85 and FAT 110 curves with the power index m of 2.89 are recommended in the fatigue evaluation on the RD joint using TEUs in terms of nominal stress and hot spot stress respectively. Meanwhile, FAT 70 and FAT 90 curves with m of 2.92 are suggested in the evaluation on the RD joint using CUs in terms of nominal stress and hot spot stress, respectively.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.243-251
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• 2016

Longitudinally structural cracks are sometimes observed in the pavement on steel plate deck bridges because traffic truck loadings can cause large local deformations of the thin deck plate stiffened by longitudinal and transverse beams. In this study, an improved finite strip method using flat-shell strip, prism, and link elements is presented to investigate local deformations of steel decks with pavements in which flexural and torsional stiffness effects of thin floor beams are rigorously taken into account. A simplified deck model extracted from steel plate-girder bridges is analyzed using the developed FSM and the commercial FE program, ABAQUS and also, their numerical results are compared and discussed.

• KSCE Journal of Civil and Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.815-826
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• 1994

Skew bridges are found frequently in new bridge construction due to geographical conditions when new constructing bridges are put across the existing highways, railroads or rivers. This study is to investigate the static behaviors of the steel deck plates of skew bridges which are increasingly used in bridges due to outstanding quality of structural steels, development of welding techniques, in order to reduce dead loads and period of constructions. The static behaviours of steel deck plates are analyzed using general purpose FE code SAP90 by modeling the skewed deck plates with rigorous finite elements, as the skew angles vary. The results of finite element analysis for the behaviors of steel deck plates and concrete slabs in acute, obtuse corners and center of decks are compared and discussed as the skew angles vary from $90^{\circ}$ to $30^{\circ}$. Two types of decks are treated, as isotropic plates and orthotropic plates, respectively. From the results of finite element analysis, it is found that more moments, reactions, and deflections occur at the obtuse corners than at the center of skewed decks regardless of isotropy or orthotropy. Especially, in case of the skewed deck plates with skew angles less than 45 degrees, significantly large discrepancies for the values of those internal forces are shown between the skewed and right deck plates. This study estimates the characteristics of deck behaviors according to skew angles, and proposes limitations of skew angles and the ciritical regions of decks.