• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.27 no.6
• /
• pp.697-711
• /
• 2007

Though extensive research has been carried out for the ultimate strength of steel reinforced concrete (SRC) members under static and cyclic load, there was only limited information on the applied analysis models. Modeling of the inelastic response of SRC members can be accomplished by using a microcosmic model. However, generally used microcosmic model, which usually contains a group of parameters, is too complicated to apply in the nonlinear structural computation for large whole buildings. The intent of this paper is to develop an effective modeling approach for the reliable prediction of the inelastic response of SRC columns. Firstly, five SRC columns were tested under cyclic static load and constant axial force. Based on the experimental results, normalized trilinear skeleton curves were then put forward. Theoretical equation of normalizing point (ultimate strength point) was built up according to the load-bearing mechanism of RC columns and verified by the 5 specimens in this test and 14 SRC columns from parallel tests. Since no obvious strength deterioration and pinch effect were observed from the load-displacement curve, hysteresis rule considering only stiffness degradation was proposed through regression analysis. Compared with the experimental results, the applied analysis model is so reasonable to capture the overall cyclic response of SRC columns that it can be easily used in both static and dynamic analysis of the whole SRC structural systems.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.63 no.2
• /
• pp.171-180
• /
• 2017

Static and dynamic instability of a viscoelastic carbon nanotube (CNT) embedded on a thermo-elastic foundation are investigated, in this research. The CNT is modeled based on Euler-Bernoulli beam (EBB) and nonlocal small scale elasticity theory is utilized to analyze the structure. Governing equations of the system are derived using Hamilton's principle and differential quadrature (DQ) method is applied to solve the partial differential equations. The effects of variable axial load and diverse boundary conditions on static/vibration instability are studied. To verify the result of the DQ method, the Galerkin weighted residual approach is used for the instability analysis. It is observed appropriate agreement for results of two different solution methods and satisfactory accuracy with those obtained in prior studies. The results of this work could be useful for engineers and designers in order to produce and design nano/micro structures in thermo-elastic medium.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.39 no.4
• /
• pp.599-620
• /
• 2011

The investigation on possible causes of failures related to documented collapses is a complicated issue, primarily due to the scarcity and inadequacy of information available. Although several studies have tried to understand which are the inherent structural deficiencies or circumstances associated to failure of the main structural elements in a reinforced concrete frame, to the authors knowledge a uniform approach for the evaluation building static vulnerability, does not exist yet. This paper investigates, by means of a detailed case study, the potential failure mechanisms of an existing reinforced concrete building. The linear elastic analysis for the three-dimensional building model gives an insight on the working conditions of the structural elements, demonstrating the relevance of a number of structural faults that could sensibly lower the structure's safety margin. Next, the building's bearing capacity is studied by means of parametric nonlinear analysis performed at the element's level. It is seen that, depending on material properties, concrete strength and steel yield stress, the failure hierarchy could be dominated by either brittle or ductile mechanisms.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.62 no.2
• /
• pp.247-258
• /
• 2017

Beam-like structures such as bridge, high building and tower, pipes, flexible connecting rods and some robotic manipulators are often excited by support motions. These structures are important in machines and structures. So, this study proposes an analytic method to accurately predict the dynamic behaviors of the structures during support motions or an earthquake. Using Timoshenko beam theory which is valid even for non-slender beams and for high-frequency responses, the analytic responses of fixed-fixed beams subjected to a real seismic motions at supports are illustrated to show the principled approach to the proposed method. The responses of a slender beam obtained by using Timoshenko beam theory are compared with the solutions based on Euler-Bernoulli beam theory to validate the correctness of the proposed method. The dynamic analysis for the fixed-fixed beam subjected to support motions gives useful information to develop an understanding of the structural behavior of the beam. The bending moment and the shear force of a slender beam are governed by dynamic components while those of a stocky beam are governed by static components. Especially, the maximal magnitudes of the bending moment and the shear force of the thick beam are proportional to the difference of support displacements and they are influenced by the seismic wave velocity.

• Advances in biomechanics and applications
• /
• v.1 no.1
• /
• pp.1-14
• /
• 2014

In this paper, a simple and accurate finite element model coupled to quasi-brittle damage law able to describe the multiple cracks initiation and their progressive propagation is developed in order to predict the complete force-displacement curve and the fracture pattern of human proximal femur under quasi-static load. The motivation of this work was to propose a simple and practical FE model with a good compromise between complexity and accuracy of the simulation considering a limited number of model parameters that can predict proximal femur fracture more accurately and physically than the fracture criteria based models. Different damage laws for cortical and trabecular bone are proposed based on experimental results to describe the inelastic damage accumulation under the excessive load. When the damage parameter reaches its critical value inside an element of the mesh, its stiffness matrix is set to zero leading to the redistribution of the stress state in the vicinity of the fractured zone (crack initiation). Once a crack is initiated, the propagation direction is simulated by the propagation of the broken elements of the mesh. To illustrate the potential of the proposed approach, the left femur of a male (age 61) previously investigated by Keyak and Falkinstein, 2003 (Model B: male, age 61) was simulated till complete fracture under one-legged stance quasi-static load. The proposed finite element model leads to more realistic and precise results concerning the shape of the force-displacement curve (yielding and fracturing) and the profile of the fractured edge.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.69 no.1
• /
• pp.95-104
• /
• 2019

The Standard ASCE 61-14 proposes the Substitute Structure Method (SSM) as a Nonlinear Static Procedure (NSP) to estimate nonlinear displacement demands at the center of mass of piers or wharves under seismic actions. To account for bidirectional earthquake excitation according to the Standard, results from independent pushover analyses in each orthogonal direction should be combined using either a 100/30 directional approach or a procedure referred to as the Dynamic Magnification Factor, DMF. The main purpose of this paper is to present an evaluation of these NSPs in relation to four wharf model structures on soil conditions ranging from soft to medium dense clay. Results from nonlinear static analyses were compared against benchmark values of relevant Engineering Design Parameters, EDPs. The latter are defined as the geometric mean demands that are obtained from nonlinear dynamic analyses using a set of 30 two-component ground motion records. It was found that SSM provides close estimates of the benchmark displacement demands at the center of mass of the wharf structures. Furthermore, for the most critical pile connection at a landside corner of the wharf the 100/30 and DMF approaches produced displacement, curvature, and force demands that were reasonably comparable to corresponding benchmark values.

• Journal of Power Electronics
• /
• v.19 no.1
• /
• pp.244-253
• /
• 2019

Finite control set model-predictive control (FCS-MPC) has received increasing attentions due to its outstanding dynamic performance. It is being widely used in power converters and multilevel inverters. However, FCS-MPC requires a lot of calculations, especially for multilevel-cascaded H-bridge (CHB) static synchronous compensators (STATCOMs), since it has to take account of all the feasible voltage vectors of inverters. Hence, an improved five-segment space vector pulse width modulation (SVPWM) method based on the non-orthogonal static reference frames is proposed. The proposed SVPWM method has a lower number of switching states and requires fewer computations than the conventional method. As a result, it makes FCS-MPC more efficient for multilevel cascaded H-bridge STATCOMs. The partial cost function is adopted to sequentially solve for the reference current and capacitor voltage. The proposed FCS-MPC method can reduce the calculation burden of the FCS-MPC strategy, and reduce both the switching frequency and power losses. Simulation and experimental results validate the excellent performance of the proposed method when compared with the conventional approach.

• Earthquakes and Structures
• /
• v.22 no.6
• /
• pp.571-584
• /
• 2022

The residual displacement ratio (RDRs) response spectra have been generally used as an important means to evaluate the post-earthquake repairability, and the ratios of residual to maximum inelastic displacement are considered to be more appropriate for development of the spectra. This methodology, however, assumes that the expected residual displacement can be computed as the product of the RDRs and maximum inelastic displacement, without considering the correlation between these two variables, which inevitably introduces potential systematic error. For providing an adequately accurate estimate of residual displacement, while accounting for the collapse resistance performance prior to the repairability evaluation, a probability-based procedure to estimate the residual displacement demands using the nonlinear static analysis (NSA) is developed for single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) systems. To this end, the energy-based equivalent damping ratio used for NSA is revised to obtain the maximum displacement coincident with the nonlinear time history analysis (NTHA) results in the mean sense. Then, the possible systematic error resulted from RDRs spectra methodology is examined based on the NTHA results of SDOF systems. Finally, the statistical relation between the residual displacement and the NSA-based maximum displacement is established. The results indicate that the energy-based equivalent damping ratio will underestimate the damping for short period ranges, and overestimate the damping for longer period ranges. The RDRs spectra methodology generally leads to the results being non-conservative, depending on post-yield stiffness. The proposed approach emphasizes that the repairability evaluation should be based on the premise of no collapse, which matches with the current performance-based seismic assessment procedure.

• Wind and Structures
• /
• v.37 no.1
• /
• pp.39-56
• /
• 2023

To ensure the wind stability of a long-span suspension bridge during deck erection under skew wind, based on the aerostatic and self-excited aerodynamic force models under skew wind, a computational approach of refined flutter analysis for long-span bridges under skew wind is firstly established, in which the effects of structural nonlinearity, the static wind action and full-mode coupling etc are fully considered, and the corresponding computational procedure is programmed. By taking the Runyang suspension bridge over the Yangtze River as example, the flutter stability of the bridge in completion under skew wind is then analyzed with the aerodynamic parameters of a similar bridge deck measured from the sectional model wind tunnel test under skew wind. Finally, through simulating the girder segments erected symmetrically from the midspan to towers, from the towers to midspan and simultaneously from the towers and midspan to the quarter points, respectively, the evolutions of flutter stability limits during the deck erection under skew wind are investigated numerically, the favorable aerodynamically deck erection sequence is proposed, and the influences of skew wind and static wind effect on the flutter stability of suspension bridge under construction are ascertained.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
• /
• v.68 no.4
• /
• pp.385-398
• /
• 2018

In the present paper, we offer a new flat shell finite element. It is the result of the combination of a membrane element and a bending element, both based on the strain-based formulation. It is known that $C^{\circ}$ plane membrane elements provide poor deflection and stress for problems where bending is dominant. In addition, they encounter continuity and compliance problems when they connect to C1 class plate elements. The reach of the present work is to surmount these problems when a membrane element is coupled with a thin plate element in order to construct a shell element. The membrane element used is a triangular element with four nodes, three nodes at the vertices of the triangle and the fourth one at its barycenter. Each node has three degrees of freedom, two translations and one rotation around the normal. The coefficients related to the degrees of freedom at the internal node are subsequently removed from the element stiffness matrix by using the static condensation technique. The interpolation functions of strain, displacements and stresses fields are developed from equilibrium conditions. The plate element used for the construction of the present shell element is a triangular four-node thin plate element based on Kirchhoff plate theory, the strain approach, the four fictitious node, the static condensation and the analytic integration. The shell element result of this combination is robust, competitive and efficient.