• Wind and Structures
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.397-413
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• 2018

Excitation mechanism of interference effect between two tall buildings is investigated with wind tunnel experiments. Synchronized building surface pressure and flow field measurements by particle image velocimetry (PIV) are conducted to explore the relationship between the disturbed wind flow field and the consequent wind load modification for twin buildings in tandem. This reveals evident excitation mechanisms for the fluctuating across-wind loads on the buildings. For small distance (X/D < 3) between two buildings, the disturbed flow pattern of impaired vortex shedding is observed and the fluctuating across-wind load on the downstream building decreases. For larger distance ($X/D{\geq}3$), strong correlation between the across-wind load of the downstream building and the oscillation of the wake of the upstream building is found. By further analysis with conditional sampling and phase-averaged techniques, the coherent flow structures in the building gap are clearly observed and the wake oscillation of the upstream building is confirmed to be the reason of the magnified across-wind force on the downstream building. For efficient PIV measurement, the experiments use a square-section high-rise building model with geometry scale smaller than the usual value. Interference factors for all three components of wind loads on the building models being surrounded by another identical building with various configurations are measured and compared with those from previous studies made at large geometry scale. The results support that for interference effect between buildings with sharp corners, the length scale effect plays a minor role provided that the minimum Reynolds number requirement is met.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1569-1582
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• 2015

This study explores the lateral deflections of diagonal braces in concentrically-braced earthquake-resisting frames. The performance of this widely-used system is often compromised by the flexural buckling of slender braces in compression. In addition to reducing the compressive resistance, buckling may also cause these members to undergo sizeable lateral deflections which could damage surrounding structural components. Different approaches have been used in the past to predict the mid-length lateral deflections of cyclically loaded steel braces based on their theoretical deformed geometry or by using experimental data. Expressions have been proposed relating the mid-length lateral deflection to the axial displacement ductility of the member. Recent experiments were conducted on hollow and concrete-filled circular hollow section (CHS) braces of different lengths under cyclic loading. Very slender, concrete-filled tubular braces exhibited a highly ductile response, undergoing large axial displacements prior to failure. The presence of concrete infill did not influence the magnitude of lateral deflection in relation to the axial displacement, but did increase the number of cycles endured and the maximum axial displacement achieved. The corresponding lateral deflections exceeded the deflections observed in the majority of the previous experiments that were considered. Consequently, predictive expressions from previous research did not accurately predict the mid-height lateral deflections of these CHS members. Mid-length lateral deflections were found to be influenced by the member non-dimensional slenderness (${\bar{\lambda}}$) and hence a new expression was proposed for the lateral deflection in terms of member slenderness and axial displacement ductility.

• Wind and Structures
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.531-553
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• 2012

Many tall buildings possess through-building gaps at middle levels of the building elevation. Some of these floors are used as sky gardens, or refuge floors, through which wind can flow with limited blockage. It has been reported in the literature that through-building gaps can be effective in reducing across-wind excitation of tall buildings. This paper systematically examines the effectiveness of two configurations of a through-building gap, at the mid-height of a tall building, in reducing the wind-induced dynamic responses of the building. The two configurations differ in the pattern of through-building opening on the gap floor, one with opening through the central portion of the floor and the other with opening on the perimeter of the floor around a central core. Wind forces and moments on the building models were measured with a high-frequency force balance from which dynamic building responses were computed. The results show that both configurations of a through-building gap are effective in reducing the across-wind excitation with the one with opening around the perimeter of the floor being significantly more effective. Wind pressures were measured on the building faces with electronic pressure scanners to help understand the generation of wind excitation loading. The data suggest that the through-building gap reduces the fluctuating across-wind forces through a disturbance of the coherence and phase-alignment of vortex excitation.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.83-102
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• 2011

As a testbed for various structural health monitoring (SHM) technologies, a super-tall structure - the 610 m-tall Guangzhou Television and Sightseeing Tower (GTST) in southern China - is currently under construction. This study aims to explore state-of-the-art wireless sensing technologies for monitoring the ambient vibration of such a super-tall structure during construction. The very nature of wireless sensing frees the system from the need for extensive cabling and renders the system suitable for use on construction sites where conditions continuously change. On the other hand, unique technical hurdles exist when deploying wireless sensors in real-life structural monitoring applications. For example, the low-frequency and low-amplitude ambient vibration of the GTST poses significant challenges to sensor signal conditioning and digitization. Reliable wireless transmission over long distances is another technical challenge when utilized in such a super-tall structure. In this study, wireless sensing measurements are conducted at multiple heights of the GTST tower. Data transmission between a wireless sensing device installed at the upper levels of the tower and a base station located at the ground level (a distance that exceeds 443 m) is implemented. To verify the quality of the wireless measurements, the wireless data is compared with data collected by a conventional cable-based monitoring system. This preliminary study demonstrates that wireless sensing technologies have the capability of monitoring the low-amplitude and low-frequency ambient vibration of a super-tall and slender structure like the GTST.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.11 no.5
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• pp.741-777
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• 2016

A simplified approach of assessing torsionally balanced (TB) and torsionally unbalanced (TU) low-medium rise buildings of up to 30 m in height is presented in this paper for regions of low-to-moderate seismicity. The Generalised Force Method of Analysis for TB buildings which is illustrated in the early part of the paper involves calculation of the deflection profile of the building in a 2D analysis in order that a capacity diagram can be constructed to intercept with the acceleration-displacement response spectrum diagram representing seismic actions. This approach of calculation on the planar model of a building which involves applying lateral forces to the building (waiving away the need of a dynamic analysis and yet obtaining similar results) has been adapted for determining the deflection behaviour of a TU building in the later part of the paper. Another key original contribution to knowledge is taking into account the strong dependence of the torsional response behaviour of the building on the periodic properties of the applied excitations in relation to the natural periods of vibration of the building. Many of the trends presented are not reflected in provisions of major codes of practices for the seismic design of buildings. The deflection behaviour of the building in response to displacement controlled (DC) excitations is in stark contrast to behaviour in acceleration controlled (AC), or velocity controlled (VC), conditions, and is much easier to generalise. Although DC conditions are rare with buildings not exceeding 30 m in height displacement estimates based on such conditions can be taken as upper bound estimates in order that a conservative prediction of the displacement profile at the edge of a TU building can be obtained conveniently by the use of a constant amplification factor to scale results from planar analysis.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.475-494
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• 2020

Presented are experimental results from 24 full-scale push test specimens to study the behaviour of composite beams with trapezoidal profiled sheeting laid transverse to the beam axis. The tests use a single-sided horizontal push test setup and are divided into two series. First series contained shear loading only and the second had normal load besides shear load. Four parameters are studied: the effect of wire mesh position and number of its layers, placing a reinforcing bar at the bottom flange of the deck, normal load and its position, and shear stud layout. The results indicate that positioning mesh on top of the deck flange or 30 mm from top of the concrete slab does not affect the stud's strength and ductility. Thus, existing industry practice of locating the mesh at a nominal cover from top of the concrete slab and Eurocode 4 requirement of placing mesh 30 mm below the stud's head are both acceptable. Double mesh layer resulted in 17% increase in stud strength for push tests with single stud per rib. Placing a T16 bar at the bottom of the deck rib did not affect shear stud behaviour. The normal load resulted in 40% and 23% increase in stud strength for single and double studs per rib. Use of studs only in the middle three ribs out of five increased the strength by 23% compared to the layout with studs in first four ribs. Eurocode 4 and Johnson and Yuan equations predicted well the stud strength for single stud/rib tests without normal load, with estimations within 10% of the characteristic experimental load. These equations highly under-estimated the stud capacity, by about 40-50%, for tests with normal load. AISC 360-16 generally over-estimated the stud capacity, except for single stud/rib push tests with normal load. Nellinger equations precisely predicted the stud resistance for push tests with normal load, with ratio of experimental over predicted load as 0.99 and coefficient of variation of about 8%. But, Nellinger method over-estimated the stud capacity by about 20% in push tests with single studs without normal load.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.81 no.3
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• pp.349-365
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• 2022

Steel fibre-reinforced concrete (SFRC) is an emerging class of composite for construction. However, a reliable method to assess the flexural behaviour of SFRC structural member is in lack. An analytical technique is proposed for determining the moment-curvature response of concrete beams reinforced with steel fibres and longitudinal bars (R/SFRC members). The behaviour of the tensile zone of such members is highly complex due to the interaction between the residual (tension softening) stresses of SFRC and the tension stiffening stresses. The current study suggests a transparent and mechanically sound method to combine these two stress concepts. Tension stiffening is modelled by the reinforcement-related approach assuming that the corresponding stresses act in the area of tensile reinforcement. The effect is quantified based on the analogy between the R/SFRC member and the equivalent RC member having identical geometry and materials except fibres. It is assumed that the resultant tension stiffening force for the R/SFRC member can be calculated as for the equivalent RC member providing that the reinforcement strain in the cracked section of these members is the same. The resultant tension stiffening force can be defined from the moment-curvature relation of the equivalent RC member using an inverse technique. The residual stress is calculated using an existing model that eliminates the need for dedicated mechanical testing. The proposed analytical technique was validated against test data of R/SFRC beams and slabs.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.123-133
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• 2024

This study investigates the effects of loading frequency (f) and specimen size on the liquefaction resistance of clean sand. A series of cyclic direct simple shear tests were conducted on Jumunjin sand with varying consolidated relative densities (40% and 80%), f values (0.05, 0.10, and 0.20 Hz), and diameter to height (D/H) ratios (3.63, 3.18, 2.82, and 2.54). The results demonstrated the significant influence of f and D/H ratio on the number of cycles to liquefaction (N_cyc-liq) and the cyclic resistance ratio (CRR₁₅). It was observed that increasing f linearly increased N_cyc-liq. Increasing the specimen height also led to higher N_cyc-liq values irrespective of the f or relative density. Moreover, a positive correlation between CRR₁₅ and f indicated that higher f yielded higher CRR₁₅. This relationship was more pronounced in dense sand than in loose sand. Specimen height also significantly affected CRR₁₅, with increasing the specimen height resulting in higher CRR₁₅ values. Furthermore, the effect of f on CRR₁₅ was less significant compared to the influence of specimen height. The effect of f on the normalized cyclic resistance ratio (NCRR) was relatively negligible for loose sand but more substantial for dense sand depending on the D/H ratio. Data analysis revealed that the NCRR generally decreases as the D/H ratio increases. An interpolation formula was provided to calculate the NCRR based on the D/H ratio regardless of the f and relative density.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.50 no.5
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• pp.589-603
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• 2014

Expressions for determining the value of the impact force as reported in the literature and incorporated into code provisions are essentially quasi-static forces for emulating deflection. Quasi-static forces are not to be confused with contact force which is generated in the vicinity of the point of contact between the impactor and target, and contact force is responsible for damage featuring perforation and denting. The distinction between the two types of forces in the context of impact actions is not widely understood and few guidelines have been developed for their estimation. The value of the contact force can be many times higher than that of the quasi-static force and lasts for a matter of a few milli-seconds whereas the deflection of the target can evolve over a much longer time span. The stiffer the impactor the shorter the period of time to deliver the impulsive action onto the target and consequently the higher the peak value of the contact force. This phenomenon is not taken into account by any contemporary codified method of modelling impact actions which are mostly based on the considerations of momentum and energy principles. Computer software such as LS-DYNA has the capability of predicting contact force but the dynamic stiffness parameters of the impactor material which is required for input into the program has not been documented for debris materials. The alternative, direct, approach for an accurate evaluation of the damage potential of an impact scenario is by physical experimentation. However, it can be difficult to extrapolate observations from laboratory testings to behaviour in real scenarios when the underlying principles have not been established. Contact force is also difficult to measure. Thus, the amount of useful information that can be retrieved from isolated impact experiments to guide design and to quantify risk is very limited. In this paper, practical methods for estimating the amount of contact force that can be generated by the impact of a fallen debris object are introduced along with the governing principles. An experimental-calibration procedure forming part of the assessment procedure has also been verified.