• KCI Concrete Journal
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• v.12 no.1
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• pp.47-56
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• 2000

Once a structure fabricated with mass concrete is in a form of wall such as retaining wall, side walls of a concrete caisson and so on, cracks induced by hydration heat have been known to be governed by exterior restraints which are mainly related to the boundary conditions of the structure. However, it is thought that the degree of restraints can be alleviated considerably only if a lift height of concrete placement or a panel size of the wall is selected properly before construction. As a way of minimizing thermal cracking commonly observed in massive wall-typed structure, this study aimed at evaluating effects of geometrical configuration on the temperature rise and thermal stress through parametric study. Evaluation of the effect was also performed for cement types using anti-sulphate cement, blast furnace slag cement and cement blended with two mineral admixture and one ordinary Portland Cement. so called ternary blended cement. As a result of analytical study, it was found that a lift height of concrete placement is the most important factor in controlling thermal cracking in massive wall, and the increase of a lift height is not always positive to the crack occurrence as not expected.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.37-55
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• 2013

An important issue in the design of soil-nailing systems, as long-term retaining walls, is to assess their stability during seismic events. As such, this study is aimed at simulating the dynamic behavior and failure pattern of nailed structures using two series of numerical analyses, namely dynamic time history and pseudo-static. These numerical simulations are performed using the Finite Difference Method (FDM). In order to consider the actual response of a soil-nailed structure, nonlinear soil behaviour, soil-structure interaction effects, bending resistance of structural elements and construction sequences have been considered in the analyses. The obtained results revealed the efficiency of both analysis methods in simulating the seismic failure mechanism. The predicted failure pattern consists of two sliding blocks enclosed by three slip surfaces, whereby the bottom nails act as anchors and the other nails hold a semi-rigid soil mass. Moreover, it was realized that an increase in the length of the lowest nails is the most effective method to improve seismic stability of soil-nailed structures. Therefore, it is recommended to first estimate the nails pattern for static condition with the minimum required static safety factor. Then, the required seismic stability can be obtained through an increase in the length of the lowest nails. Moreover, placement of additional long nails among lowest nails in existing nailed structures can be considered as a simple retrofitting technique in seismic prone areas.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.281-303
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• 2015

The effects of infill panels on the response of r.c. frames subjected to seismic action are widely recognized. Numerous experimental investigations were effected and several analytical models were developed on this subject. This work, which is part of a larger project dealing with specific materials and structures commonly used in Italy, discusses experimental tests on masonry and samples of bare and infilled portals. The experimental activity includes tests on elemental materials, and 12 wall samples. Finally, three one-bay one-story reinforced concrete frames, designed according to the outdated Italian technical code D.M. 1996 without seismic details, were tested (bare and infilled) under constant vertical and cyclic lateral load. The first cracks observed on the framed walls occurred at a drift of about 0.3%, reaching its maximum capacity at a drift of 0.5% while retaining its capacity up to a drift of 0.6%. Infill contributed to both the stiffness and strength of the bare reinforced concrete frame at small drifts thus improving overall system behavior. In addition to the experimental activities, previously mentioned, the recalibration of a model proposed by Comberscue (1996) was evaluated. The accuracy of an OpenSees non linear fiber based model of the prototype tested, including a strut element was verified through a comparison with the final experimental results. This work has been partially supported by research grant DPC-ReLUIS 2014.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.5 no.6
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• pp.659-669
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• 2017

Grouts compared to other material sources, could be highly sensitive to cold weather conditions, especially when the compressive strength is the matter of concern. Grout as one the substantial residential building material used in retaining walls, rebar fixation, sidewalks is in need of deeper investigation, especially in extreme weather condition. In this article, compressive strength development of four different commercial grouts at three temperatures and two humidity rates are evaluated. This experiment is aimed to assess the grout strength development over time and overall compressive strength when the material is cast at low temperatures. Results represent that reducing the curing temperature about 15 degrees could result in 20% reduction in ultimate strength; however, decreasing the humidity percentage by 50% could lead to 10% reduction in ultimate strength. The maturity test results represented the effect of various temperatures and humidity rates on maturity of the grouts. Additionally, the freeze-thaw cycle's effect on the grouts is conducted to investigate the durability factor. The results show that the lower temperatures could be significantly influential on the behavior of grouts compared to lower humidity rates. It is indicated that the maturity test could not be valid and precise in harsh temperature conditions.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.635-642
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• 2018

Braced excavation systems are commonly required to ensure stability in construction of basements for shopping malls, underground transportation and other habitation facilities. For excavations in deposits of soft clays or residual soils, stiff retaining wall systems such as diaphragm walls are commonly adopted to restrain the ground movements and wall deflections in order to prevent damage to surrounding buildings and utilities. The ground surface settlement behind the excavation is closely associated with the magnitude of basal heave and the wall deflections and is also greatly influenced by the possible groundwater drawdown caused by potential wall leakage, flow from beneath the wall, flow from perched water and along the wall interface or poor panel connections due to the less satisfactory quality. This paper numerically investigates the influences of excavation geometries, the system stiffness, the soil properties and the groundwater drawdown on ground surface settlement and develops a simplified maximum surface settlement Logarithm Regression model for the maximum ground surface settlement estimation. The settlements estimated by this model compare favorably with a number of published and instrumented records.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.275-282
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• 2021

Failure mechanism which can affect geotechnical infrastructures (shallow foundations, retaining walls, and piles) constitutes one of the most encountered problems during the design process. In this respect, the shear behavior of interfaces between grained soils and solid building materials, as well as those between cohesive soils should be investigated. Therefore, a range of ring shear tests with different cohesive soils and stainless-steel interfaces have been carried out through the Bromhead apparatus that allows simulating large displacements along a failure surface. The effects of steel rings roughness and soil type on the residual friction coefficient and the shear zone features (structure, thickness, and texture orientation angle) have been investigated using the Scanning Electron Microscopy. The obtained results indicate that the residual friction coefficient and the structural characteristics of the shear zone vary according to the surface roughness and the soil type. Scanning electron microscopy reveals that the particles inside the shear zone tend to be re-oriented. Also, the shear failure mechanism can be identified along with the interface, within the soil, or simultaneously at the interface and within the soil specimen.

• Journal of the Korean Geotechnical Society
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• v.23 no.3
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• pp.133-140
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• 2007

DCM (Deep Cement Mixing Method) has been applied to build structures such as self-supported earth retaining walls. DCM columns should be penetrability into the stiff layer to assure the self-supporting ability. On the penetration increase of blade attached to the DCM mixing tools, a spiral mixing blade has been revised. Penetration characteristics of spiral blades in the stiff soil layer were evaluated through Gimhae and Incheon areas. The spiral mixing blades could penetrate into the stiff soil layers which have the N-value of greater than 30 although the penetration rate is somewhat slow. Penetration characteristics and economical efficiency should be discussed to determine the critical depth of the spiral mixing blade because the penetration efficiency can decrease in the stiff layer in this paper.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.38 no.6
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• pp.611-620
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• 2024

The slope stabilization method is constructed on bedrock, but performance degradation occurs during an impact (earthquake, blasting, etc.) after construction, which may affect service life and factor of safety. In particular, the top-down method implies the possibility of damage caused by blasting vibration due to the construction procedure. However, the current blasting design only reflects damage to nearby facilities, so there is a limit in its ability to assess the damage of reinforcement methods caused by blasting vibration within the scope of influence. In this study, we aim to evaluate problems and damage levels caused by close blasting effects on rock-integrated structures, such as panel-type retaining walls, anchor-combined structures, and small nails, which are mainly constructed using the top-down method. We will also analyze factors affecting long-term performance according to changes in conditions after construction, such as tunnel excavation, to establish optimal design measures.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.57 no.1
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• pp.1-20
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• 2016

On the basis of the geological conditions of high and steep mountainous slope on which an exit portal of an express railway tunnel with a bridge-tunnel combination is to be built, the composite structure of the exit portal with a bridge abutment of the bridge-tunnel combination is presented and the stability of the slope on which the express railway portal is to be built is analyzed using three dimensional (3D) numerical simulation in the paper. Comparison of the practicability for the reinforcement of slope with in-situ bored piles and diaphragm walls are performed so as to enhance the stability of the high and steep slope. The safety factor of the slope due to rockmass excavation both inside the exit portal and beneath the bridge abutment of the bridge-tunnel combination has been also derived using strength reduction technique. The obtained results show that post tunnel portal is a preferred structure to fit high and steep slope, and the surrounding rock around the exit portal of the tunnel on the high and steep mountainous slope remains stable when rockmass is excavated both from the inside of the exit portal and underneath the bridge abutment after the slope is reinforced with both bored piles and diaphragm walls. The stability of the high and steep slope is principally dominated by the shear stress state of the rockmass at the toe of the slope; the procedure of excavating rockmass in the foundation pit of the bridge abutment does not obviously affect the slope stability. In-situ bored piles are more effective in controlling the deformation of the abutment foundation pit in comparison with diaphragm walls and are used as a preferred retaining structure to uphold the stability of slope in respect of the lesser time, easier procedure and lower cost in the construction of the exit portal with bridge-tunnel combination on the high and steep mountainous slope. The results obtained from the numerical analysis in the paper can be used to guide the structural design and construction of express railway tunnel portal with bridge-tunnel combination on high and abrupt mountainous slope under similar situations.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Landscape Architecture
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.1-12
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• 2016

This study aimed to interpret the fundamental cause of road-kill occurrences and analyzed spatial characteristics of the road-kill locations from Route 44 in Seorak National Park, Korea. Logistic regression analysis was utilized for backward elimination on variables. Seorak National Park Service has constructed GIS-data of 81 road-kill occurrences from 2008 to 2013 and these data were assigned as dependent variables in this study. Considered as independent variables from previous studies and field surveys, vegetation age-class, distance to streams, coverage of fences and retaining walls, and distance to building sites were assigned as road-kill impact factors. The coverage of fences and retaining walls(-1.0135) was shown as the most influential factor whereas vegetation age-class(0.0001) was the least influential among all of the significant factor estimates. Accordingly, the rate of road-kill occurrence can increase as the distance to building sites and stream becomes closer and vegetation age-class becomes higher. The predictive accuracy of road-kill occurrence was shown to be 72.2% as a result of analysis, assuming as partial causes of road-kill occurrences reflecting spatial characteristics. This study can be regarded as beneficial to provide objective basis for spatial decision making including road-kill occurrence mitigation policies and plans in the future.