Super-long span bridges demand high design requirements and involve many difficulties when constructed, which is an important indicator to reflect the bridge technical level of a country. Over the past three decades, a large percentage of the new long-span bridges around the world were built in China, and thus, abundant technological innovations and experience have been accumulated during the design and construction. This paper aims to review and summarize the design and construction practices of the superstructure, the substructure, and the steel deck paving of the long-span bridges during the past decades as well as the current operation status of the existing long-span bridges in China. A future perspective was given on the developing trend of high-speed railway bridge, bridge over deep-sea, health monitoring and maintenance, intellectualization, standard system, and information technology, which is expected to guide the development direction for the construction of future super long-span bridges and promote China to become a strong bridge construction country.
In recent few years, significant improvement has been made in developing largescale 3D printers to accommodate the need of industrial-scale 3D printing. It is of great feasibility to construct structural components and buildings by means of 3D concrete printing. The major issues of this innovative technique focus on the preparation and optimization of concrete materials which possess favourable printable properties as well as the measurement and evaluation methods of their workability. This paper firstly introduces three largescale 3D printing systems that have been successfully applied in construction industry. It then summarizes the commonly used raw materials in concrete manufacturing. Critical factors that should be particularly controlled in material preparation are specified. Easy-extrusive, easy-flowing, well-buildable, proper setting time and low shrinkage are significant for concrete mixture to meet the critical requirements of a freeform construction process. Thereafter, measuring methods that can be employed to assess the fresh and hardened properties of concrete at early stages are suggested. Finally, a few of evaluation methods are presented which may offer certain assistance for optimizing material preparation. The objective of this work is to review current design methodologies and experimental measurement and evaluation methods for 3D printable concrete materials and promote its responsible use with largescale 3D printing technology.
An approach to control the profiles of interstory drift ratios along the height of building structures via topology optimization is proposed herein. The theoretical foundation of the proposed approach involves solving a min–max optimization problem to suppress the maximum interstory drift ratio among all stories. Two formulations are suggested: one inherits the bound formulation and the other utilizes a p-norm function to aggregate all individual interstory drift ratios. The proposed methodology can shape the interstory drift ratio profiles into inverted triangular or quadratic patterns because it realizes profile control using a group of shape weight coefficients. The proposed formulations are validated via a series of numerical examples. The disparity between the two formulations is clear. The optimization results show the optimal structural features for controlling the interstory drift ratios under different requirements.
In this study, a new system consisting of a combination of braces and steel infill panels called the braced corrugated steel shear panel (BCSSP) is presented. To obtain the hysteretic behavior of the proposed system, the quasi-static cyclic performances of two experimental specimens were first evaluated. The finite element modeling method was then verified based on the obtained experimental results. Additional numerical evaluations were carried out to investigate the effects of different parameters on the system. Subsequently, a relationship was established to estimate the buckling shear strength of the system without considering residual stresses. The results obtained from the parametric study indicate that the corrugated steel shear panel (CSSP) with the specifications of a = 30 mm, t = 2 mm, and θ = 90° had the highest energy dissipation capacity and ultimate strength while the CSSP with the specifications of a = 30 mm, t = 2 mm, and θ = 30° had the highest initial stiffness. It can thus be concluded that the latter CSSP has the best structural performance and that increasing the number of corrugations, corrugation angle, and plate thickness and decreasing the sub-panel width generally enhance the performance of CSSPs in terms of the stability of their hysteretic behaviors.
In this study, the mechanical properties of the composite plate were considered Gaussian random fields and their effects on the buckling load and corresponding mode shapes were studied by developing a semi-analytical non-intrusive approach. The random fields were decomposed by the Karhunen−Loève method. The strains were defined based on the assumptions of the first-order and higher-order shear-deformation theories. Stochastic equations of motion were extracted using Euler–Lagrange equations. The probabilistic response space was obtained by employing the non-intrusive polynomial chaos method. Finally, the effect of spatially varying stochastic properties on the critical load of the plate and the irregularity of buckling mode shapes and their sequences were studied for the first time. Our findings showed that different shear deformation plate theories could significantly influence the reliability of thicker plates under compressive loading. It is suggested that a linear relationship exists between the mechanical properties’ variation coefficient and critical loads’ variation coefficient. Also, in modeling the plate properties as random fields, a significant stochastic irregularity is obtained in buckling mode shapes, which is crucial in practical applications.
This paper presents a review of fracture modeling of concrete. The complex material, such as concrete, has been widely used in construction industries and become trending issue in the last decades. Based on comprehensive literature review, there are two main approaches considered to-date of concrete fracture modeling, such as macroscopic and micromechanical models. The purpose of this review is to provide insight comparison from different techniques in modeling of fracture in concrete which are available. In the first section, an overview of fracture modeling in general is highlighted. Two different approaches both of macroscopic and micromechanical models will be reviewed. As heterogeneity of concrete material is major concern in micromechanical-based concrete modeling, one section will discuss this approach. Finally, the summary from all of reviewed techniques will be pointed out before the future perspective is given.
Today, the most commonly used civil infrastructure inspection method is based on a visual assessment conducted by certified inspectors following prescribed protocols. However, the increase in aggressive environmental and load conditions, coupled with the achievement of many structures of the life-cycle end, has highlighted the need to automate damage identification and satisfy the number of structures that need to be inspected. To overcome this challenge, this paper presents a method for automating concrete damage classification using a deep convolutional neural network. The convolutional neural network was designed after an experimental investigation of a wide number of pretrained networks, applying the transfer-learning technique. Training and validation were conducted using a database built with 1352 images balanced between “undamaged”, “cracked”, and “delaminated” concrete surfaces. To increase the network robustness compared to images in real-world situations, different image configurations have been collected from the Internet and on-field bridge inspections. The GoogLeNet model, with the highest validation accuracy of approximately 94%, was selected as the most suitable network for concrete damage classification. The results confirm that the proposed model can correctly classify images from real concrete surfaces of bridges, tunnels, and pavement, resulting in an effective alternative to the current visual inspection techniques.
The tensile behavior of hybrid fiber reinforced concrete (HFRC) is important to the design of HFRC and HFRC structure. This study used an artificial neural network (ANN) model to describe the tensile behavior of HFRC. This ANN model can describe well the tensile stress-strain curve of HFRC with the consideration of 23 features of HFRC. In the model, three methods to process output features (no-processed, mid-processed, and processed) are discussed and the mid-processed method is recommended to achieve a better reproduction of the experimental data. This means the strain should be normalized while the stress doesn’t need normalization. To prepare the database of the model, both many direct tensile test results and the relevant literature data are collected. Moreover, a traditional equation-based model is also established and compared with the ANN model. The results show that the ANN model has a better prediction than the equation-based model in terms of the tensile stress-strain curve, tensile strength, and strain corresponding to tensile strength of HFRC. Finally, the sensitivity analysis of the ANN model is also performed to analyze the contribution of each input feature to the tensile strength and strain corresponding to tensile strength. The mechanical properties of plain concrete make the main contribution to the tensile strength and strain corresponding to tensile strength, while steel fibers tend to make more contributions to these two items than PVA fibers.
Reinforced concrete beams consisting of both steel and glass-fiber-reinforced polymer rebars exhibit excellent strength, serviceability, and durability. However, the fatigue shear performance of such beams is unclear. Therefore, beams with hybrid longitudinal bars and hybrid stirrups were designed, and fatigue shear tests were performed. For specimens that failed by fatigue shear, all the glass-fiber-reinforced polymer stirrups and some steel stirrups fractured at the critical diagonal crack. For the specimen that failed by the static test after 8 million fatigue cycles, the static capacity after fatigue did not significantly decrease compared with the calculated value. The initial fatigue level has a greater influence on the crack development and fatigue life than the fatigue level in the later phase. The fatigue strength of the glass-fiber-reinforced polymer stirrups in the specimens was considerably lower than that of the axial tension tests on the glass-fiber-reinforced polymer bar in air and beam-hinge tests on the glass-fiber-reinforced polymer bar, and the failure modes were different. Glass-fiber-reinforced polymer stirrups were subjected to fatigue tension and shear, and failed owing to shear.
This study modeled the moving-vehicle-induced forcing excitation on a single-span prismatic bridge as a multiple frequency-multiplication harmonic load on the modal coordinates of a linear elastic simple Euler–Bernoulli beam, and investigated the forced modal oscillation and resonance behavior of this type of dynamic system. The forced modal responses consist of multiple frequency-multiplication steady-state harmonics and one damped mono-frequency complementary harmonic. The analysis revealed that a moving load induces high-harmonic forced resonance amplification when the moving speed is low. To verify the occurrence of high-harmonic forced resonance, numerical tests were conducted on single-span simple beams based on structural modeling using the finite element method (FEM) and a moving sprung-mass oscillator vehicle model. The forced resonance amplification characteristics of the fundamental mode for beam response estimation are presented with consideration to different end restraint conditions. The results reveal that the high-harmonic forced resonance may be significant for the investigated beams subjected to vehicle loads moving at specific low speeds. For the investigated single-span simple beams, the moving vehicle carriage heaving oscillation modulates the beam modal frequency, but does not induce notable variation of the modal oscillation harmonic structure for the cases that vehicle of small mass moves in low speed.
Along with the rapid development of port building, the negative impacts of port’s construction and operation on the coastline ecosystem are also increasingly strong. Therefore, it’s urgent to establish a scientific and complete system of port ecological suitability evaluation. This paper pointed out the characteristics of port ecological effects and the principles of selecting evaluation index, and used the “pressure-state-response (PSR)” model to analysis the various pressures on the environment caused by port construction and operation, and the system’s response. On this basis, we constructed the port ecological suitability evaluation index. This model used the combination of qualitative and quantitative analytic hierarchy process, to meet the multi-level, multi-objective characteristics of evaluation index system. The evaluation index system and evaluation model can be used to analysis the ecological suitability of port projects comprehensively and have some guiding significance to the port ecological suitability evaluation.
This study investigates the use of glass fiber-reinforced polyester (GRP) pipe powder (PP) for improving the bearing capacity of sandy soils. After a series of direct share tests, the optimum PP addition for improving the bearing capacity of soils was found to be 12%. Then, using the optimum PP addition, the bearing capacity of the soil was estimated through a series of loading tests on a shallow foundation model placed in a test box. The bearing capacity of sandy soil was improved by up to 30.7%. The ratio of the depth of the PP-reinforced soil to the diameter of the foundation model (H/D) of 1.25 could sufficiently strengthen sandy soil when the optimum PP ratio was used. Microstructural analyses showed that the increase in the bearing capacity can be attributed to the chopped fibers in the PP and their multiaxial distribution in the soil. Besides improving the engineering properties of soils, using PP as an additive in soils would reduce the accumulation of the industrial waste, thus providing a twofold benefit.
This paper presents a numerical simulation study on electromechanical impedance technique for structural damage identification. The basic principle of impedance based damage detection is structural impedance will vary with the occurrence and development of structural damage, which can be measured from electromechanical admittance curves acquired from PZT patches. Therefore, structure damage can be identified from the electromechanical admittance measurements. In this study, a model based method that can identify both location and severity of structural damage through the minimization of the deviations between structural impedance curves and numerically computed response is developed. The numerical model is set up using the spectral element method, which is promised to be of high numerical efficiency and computational accuracy in the high frequency range. An optimization procedure is then formulated to estimate the property change of structural elements from the electric admittance measurement of PZT patches. A case study on a pin-pin bar is conducted to investigate the feasibility of the proposed method. The results show that the presented method can accurately identify bar damage location and severity even when the measurements are polluted by 5% noise.
In waterfront geotechnical engineering, seismic and drainage conditions must be considered in the design of retaining structures. This paper proposes a general analytical method to evaluate the seismic active earth pressure on a retaining wall with backfill subjected to partial steady seepage flow under seismic conditions. The method comprises the following steps: i) determination of the total head, ii) upper bound solution of seismic active earth thrust, and iii) deduction for the earth pressure distribution. The determination of total head h(x,z) relies on the Fourier series expansions, and the expressions of the seismic active earth thrust and pressure are derived by using the upper bound theorem. Parametric studies reveal that insufficient drainage and earthquakes are crucial factors that cause unfavorable earth pressure. The numerical results confirm the validity of the total head distribution. Comparisons indicate that the proposed method is consistent with other relevant existing methods in terms of predicting seismic active earth pressure. The method can be applied to the seismic design of waterfront retaining walls.
The horizontal bearing behavior of a single batter pile (SBP) is vital to its application in practical engineering; however, the horizontal responses of SBPs change with the directions of horizontal loads, and this phenomenon is rarely investigated. Therefore, the directional differences in the horizontal bearing behaviors of SBPs are investigated in this study. Four model tests are conducted to preliminarily examine the effects of the skew angle of horizontal loads on the horizontal bearing capacities and distributions of the bending moments of the SBPs. Subsequently, the differences in the responses of the SBPs under horizontal loads in various directions at full scale are analyzed comprehensively via finite-element (FE) analysis. The effects of the skew angle on SBP-soil interaction are discussed. Moreover, an empirical design method is proposed based on the FE analysis results to predict the bearing ratios of SBPs in medium-dense and dense sand while considering the effects of the skew angle, batter angle, and pile diameter. The method is confirmed to be effective, as confirmed by the close agreement between the predicting results with the model test (reported in this study) and centrifuge model test results (reported in the literature).
For localized fires, it is necessary to consider the thermal and mechanical responses of building elements subject to uneven heating under the influence of wind. In this paper, the thermomechanical phenomena experienced by a ceiling jet and I-beam in a structural fire were simulated. Instead of applying the concept of adiabatic surface temperature (AST) to achieve fluid–structure coupling, this paper proposes a new computational fluid dynamics–finite element method numerical simulation that combines wind, fire, thermal, and structural analyses. First, to analyze the velocity and temperature distributions, the results of the numerical model and experiment were compared in windless conditions, showing good agreement. Vortices were found in the local area formed by the upper and lower flanges of the I-beam and the web, generating a local high-temperature zone and enhancing the heat transfer of convection. In an incoming-flow scenario, the flame was blown askew significantly; the wall temperature was bimodally distributed in the axial direction. The first temperature peak was mainly caused by radiative heat transfer, while the second resulted from convective heat transfer. In terms of mechanical response, the yield strength degradation in the highest-temperature region in windless conditions was found to be significant, thus explaining the stress distribution of steel beams in the fire field. The mechanical response of the overall elements considering the incoming flows was essentially elastic.
In recent years, tunnel boring machines (TBMs) have been widely used in tunnel construction. However, the TBM control parameters set based on operator experience may not necessarily be suitable for certain geological conditions. Hence, a method to optimize TBM control parameters using an improved loss function-based artificial neural network (ILF-ANN) combined with quantum particle swarm optimization (QPSO) is proposed herein. The purpose of this method is to improve the TBM performance by optimizing the penetration and cutterhead rotation speeds. Inspired by the regularization technique, a custom artificial neural network (ANN) loss function based on the penetration rate and rock-breaking specific energy as TBM performance indicators is developed in the form of a penalty function to adjust the output of the network. In addition, to overcome the disadvantage of classical error backpropagation ANNs, i.e., the ease of falling into a local optimum, QPSO is adopted to train the ANN hyperparameters (weight and bias). Rock mass classes and tunneling parameters obtained in real time are used as the input of the QPSO-ILF-ANN, whereas the cutterhead rotation speed and penetration are specified as the output. The proposed method is validated using construction data from the Songhua River water conveyance tunnel project. Results show that, compared with the TBM operator and QPSO-ANN, the QPSO-ILF-ANN effectively increases the TBM penetration rate by 14.85% and 13.71%, respectively, and reduces the rock-breaking specific energy by 9.41% and 9.18%, respectively.
The smoothed finite element method (S-FEM) was originated by G R Liu by combining some meshfree techniques with the well-established standard finite element method (FEM). It has a family of models carefully designed with innovative types of smoothing domains. These models are found having a number of important and theoretically profound properties. This article first provides a concise and easy-to-follow presentation of key formulations used in the S-FEM. A number of important properties and unique features of S-FEM models are discussed in detail, including 1) theoretically proven softening effects; 2) upper-bound solutions; 3) accurate solutions and higher convergence rates; 4) insensitivity to mesh distortion; 5) Jacobian-free; 6) volumetric-locking-free; and most importantly 7) working well with triangular and tetrahedral meshes that can be automatically generated. The S-FEM is thus ideal for automation in computations and adaptive analyses, and hence has profound impact on AI-assisted modeling and simulation. Most importantly, one can now purposely design an S-FEM model to obtain solutions with special properties as wish, meaning that S-FEM offers a framework for design numerical models with desired properties. This novel concept of numerical model on-demand may drastically change the landscape of modeling and simulation. Future directions of research are also provided.
The responses of cement mortar specimens of different dimensions under compression and tension were calculated based on the discrete element method with the modified-rigid-body-spring concrete model, in which the mechanical parameters derived from macro-scale material tests were applied directly to the mortar elements. By comparing the calculated results with those predicted by the Carpinteri and Weibull size effects laws, a series of formulas to convert the macro-scale mechanical parameters of mortar and interface to those at the meso-scale were proposed through a fitting analysis. Based on the proposed formulas, numerical simulation of axial compressive and tensile failure processes of concrete and cement mortar materials, respectively were conducted. The calculated results were a good match with the test results.
The problem related to bearing capacity of footing either on pure soil or on pure rock mass has been investigated over the years. Currently, no study deals with the bearing capacity of strip footing on a cohesive soil layer overlying rock mass. Therefore, by implementing the lower bound finite element limit analysis in conjunction with the second-order cone programming and the power cone programming, the ultimate bearing capacity of a strip footing located on a cohesive soil overlying rock mass is determined in this study. By considering the different values of interface adhesion factor (αcr) between the cohesive soil and rock mass, the ultimate bearing capacity of strip footing is expressed in terms of influence factor (If) for different values of cohesive soil layer cover ratio (Tcs/B). The failure of cohesive soil is modeled by using Mohr−Coulomb yield criterion, whereas Generalized Hoek−Brown yield criterion is utilized to model the rock mass at failure. The variations ofIf with different magnitudes of αcr are studied by considering the influence of the rock mass strength parameters of beneath rock mass layer. To examine stress distribution at different depths, failure patterns are also plotted.
A numerical framework was proposed for the seismic analysis of underground structures in layered ground under inclined P-SV waves. The free-field responses are first obtained using the stiffness matrix method based on plane-wave assumptions. Then, the domain reduction method was employed to reproduce the wavefield in the numerical model of the soil–structure system. The proposed numerical framework was verified by providing comparisons with analytical solutions for cases involving free-field responses of homogeneous ground, layered ground, and pressure-dependent heterogeneous ground, as well as for an example of a soil–structure interaction simulation. Compared with the viscous and viscous-spring boundary methods adopted in previous studies, the proposed framework exhibits the advantage of incorporating oblique incident waves in a nonlinear heterogeneous ground. Numerical results show that SV-waves are more destructive to underground structures than P-waves, and the responses of underground structures are significantly affected by the incident angles.
Statically push-out tests of 20 steel reinforced concrete short columns (SRCSC) with stud connectors on the surface of shape steel after fire and two SRCSC under ambient temperature were carried out, in order to study the failure mode, load-slip relationship and the interfacial shear transfer of SRC members after fire. Experimental results show that the typical failure modes and load-slip curves of SRCSC after fire are almost the same as the case under ambient temperature. The interfacial shear transfer of SRCSC declines exponentially not only with the increase of the peak temperature the specimen experienced but also with the increase of the peak temperature duration. The interfacial shear transfer of the specimens with studs arranged at the steel web is much higher than those with studs arranged at the steel flange. Empirical formulas of SRCSC interfacial shear transfer after fire are proposed, and the calculated results generally agree well with the experimental results.
This paper presents the fresh and hardened properties of high-strength concrete comprising byproduct fine crushed aggregates (FCAs) sourced from the crushing of three different types of rocks, namely granophyre, basalt, and granite. The lowest void contents of the combined fine aggregates were observed when 40% to 60% of natural sand is replaced by the FCAs. By the replacement of 40% FCAs, the slump and bleeding of concrete with a water-to-cement ratio of 0.45 decreased by approximately 15% and 50%, respectively, owing to the relatively high fines content of the FCAs. The 28 d compressive strength of concrete was 50 MPa when 40% FCAs were used. The slight decrease in tensile strength from the FCAs is attributed to the flakiness of the particles. The correlations between the splitting tensile and compressive strengths of normal concrete provided in the AS 3600 and ACI 318 design standards are applicable for concrete using the FCAs as partial replacement of sand. The maximum 56 d drying shrinkage is 520 microstrains, which is significantly less than the recommended limit of 1000 microstrains by AS 3600 for concrete. Therefore, the use of these byproduct FCAs can be considered as a sustainable alternative option for the production of high-strength green concrete.
Research on the quality of data in a structural calculation document (SCD) is lacking, although the SCD of a bridge is used as an essential reference during the entire lifecycle of the facility. XML Schema matching enables qualitative improvement of the stored data. This study aimed to enhance the applicability of XML Schema matching, which improves the speed and quality of information stored in bridge SCDs. First, the authors proposed a method of reducing the computing time for the schema matching of bridge SCDs. The computing speed of schema matching was increased by 13 to 1800 times by reducing the checking process of the correlations. Second, the authors developed a heuristic solution for selecting the optimal weight factors used in the matching process to maintain a high accuracy by introducing a decision tree. The decision tree model was built using the content elements stored in the SCD, design companies, bridge types, and weight factors as input variables, and the matching accuracy as the target variable. The inverse-calculation method was applied to extract the weight factors from the decision tree model for high-accuracy schema matching results.
Cracking in wading-concrete structures has a worse impact on structural safety compared with conventional concrete structures. The accurate and timely monitoring of crack development plays a significant role in the safety of wading-concrete engineering. The heat-transfer rate near a crack is related to the flow velocity of the fluid in the crack. Based on this, a novel crack-identification method for underwater concrete structures is presented. This method uses water irrigation to generate seepage at the interface of a crack; then, the heat-dissipation rate in the crack area will increase because of the convective heat-transfer effect near the crack. Crack information can be identified by monitoring the cooling law and leakage flow near cracks. The proposed mobile crack-monitoring system consists of a heating system, temperature-measurement system, and irrigation system. A series of tests was conducted on a reinforced-concrete beam using this system. The crack-discrimination index ψ was defined, according to the subsection characteristics of the heat-source cooling curve. The effects of the crack width, leakage flow, and relative positions of the heat source and crack on ψ were studied. The results showed that the distribution characteristics of ψ along the monitoring line could accurately locate the crack, but not quantify the crack width. However, the leakage flow is sensitive to the crack width and can be used to identify it.
The anisotropy of rockfill materials has a significant influence on the performance of engineering structures. However, relevant research data are very limited, because of the difficulty with preparing specimens with different inclination angles using traditional methods. Furthermore, the anisotropy test of rockfill materials is complex and complicated, especially for triaxial tests, in which the major principal stress plane intersects with the compaction plane at different angles. In this study, the geometric characteristics of a typical particle fraction consisting of a specific rockfill material were statistically investigated, and the distribution characteristics of particle orientation in specimens prepared via different compaction methods were examined. For high-density rockfill materials, a set of specimen preparation devices for inclined compaction planes was developed, and a series of conventional triaxial compression tests with different principal stress direction angles were conducted. The results reveal that the principal stress direction angle has a significant effect on the modulus, shear strength, and dilatancy of the compacted rockfill materials. Analysis of the relationship between the principal stress direction angles, change in the stress state, and change in the corresponding dominant shear plane shows that the angle between the compacted surface and dominant shear plane is closely related to interlocking resistance associated with the particle orientation. In addition, different principal stress direction angles can change the extent of the particle interlocking effect, causing the specimen to exhibit different degrees of anisotropy.
This paper presents a new approach for automatical classification of structural state through deep learning. In this work, a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) was designed to fuse both the feature extraction and classification blocks into an intelligent and compact learning system and detect the structural state of a steel frame; the input was a series of vibration signals, and the output was a structural state. The digital image correlation (DIC) technology was utilized to collect vibration information of an actual steel frame, and subsequently, the raw signals, without further pre-processing, were directly utilized as the CNN samples. The results show that CNN can achieve 99% classification accuracy for the research model. Besides, compared with the backpropagation neural network (BPNN), the CNN had an accuracy similar to that of the BPNN, but it only consumes 19% of the training time. The outputs of the convolution and pooling layers were visually displayed and discussed as well. It is demonstrated that: 1) the CNN can extract the structural state information from the vibration signals and classify them; 2) the detection and computational performance of the CNN for the incomplete data are better than that of the BPNN; 3) the CNN has better anti-noise ability.
This paper reviews the fire problem in critical transportation infrastructures such as bridges and tunnels. The magnitude of the fire problem is illustrated, and the recent increase in fire problems in bridges and tunnels is highlighted. Recent research undertaken to address fire problems in transportation structures is reviewed, as well as critical factors governing the performance of those structures. Furthermore, key strategies recommended for mitigating fire hazards in bridges and tunnels are presented, and their applicability to practical situations is demonstrated through a practical case study. Furthermore, research needs and emerging trends for enhancing the “state-of-the-art” in this area are discussed.
A numerical study is conducted to investigate the dynamic behavior of earth dams. The numerical investigation employs a fully nonlinear dynamic finite difference analysis incorporating a simple elastic perfectly plastic constitutive model to describe the stress-strain response of the soil and the Rayleigh damping to increase the level of hysteretic damping. The extended Masing rules are implemented into the constitutive model to explain more accurately the soil response under general cyclic loading. The soil stiffness and hysteretic damping change with loading history. The procedures for calibrating the constructed numerical model with centrifuge test data and also a real case history are explained. For the latter, the Long Valley (LV) earth dam subjected to the 1980 Mammoth Lake earthquake as a real case-history is analyzed and the obtained numerical results are compared with the real measurements at the site in both the time and frequency domains. Relatively good agreement is observed between computed and measured quantities. It seems that the Masing rules combined with a simple elasto-plastic model gives reasonable numerical predictions. Afterwards, a comprehensive parametric study is carried out to identify the effects of dam height, input motion characteristics, soil behavior, strength of the shell materials and dam reservoir condition on the dynamic response of earth dams. Three real earthquake records with different levels and peak acceleration values (PGAs) are used as input motions. The results show that the crest acceleration decreases when the dam height increases and no amplification is observed. Further, more inelastic behavior and more earthquake energy absorption are observed in higher dams.
Large quantities of construction and demolition (C&D) building waste are being generated as a result of rapid urbanization and natural disasters in China. An increasing awareness of environmental protection is escalating C&D waste disposal concerns. This paper presents a brief introduction to current shaking table test research in China on structures built with recycled aggregate concrete (RAC). Test structures include a cast-in situ frame model, a precast frame model and a block masonry building. The test results prove that it is feasible to use RAC as a structural material in seismic areas, with recommended modifications and proper design, especially in low-rise structures. This paper also presents several successful applications of RAC in civil and structural engineering projects in China, which will serve to promote RAC as a global ecological structural material.
This paper demonstrates the difficulties in determining the relevant material parameters for a valuation of the deformation behavior of the up- and downstream dam shell by means of an embankment dam of medium height. Laboratory as well as field tests on solid rock-fill material were performed before the beginning of construction. During the construction the properties of the available rock-fill changed from solid to soft materials. This gave rise to the necessity of adjusting the dam design of the downstream dam shoulder. Several times higher dam settlements as well as significant differential settlements between the up- and downstream dam shell were observed during construction and operation. Apart from this situation, the dam has been operated for nearly 20 years and the behavior of the water barrier has been very good.
The utilization of urban underground space (UUS) offers an effective solution to urban problems but may also negatively affect urban development. Therefore, UUS development needs better concerted guidelines to coordinate various urban systems and the multiple components of the underground world. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which should be viewed as important yardsticks for UUS development, do not explicitly mention urban underground space, although many of them are affected by both the positive and negative consequences of its development. To fill this gap, this review lays the foundations of relevant UUS concepts and uses exemplary cases to reveal that 11 out of 17 SDGs can be linked with UUS uses. These linkages also manifest that land administration, integrated planning, architectural design, and construction technology are critical dimensions for increasing the contributions of UUS to the realization of SDGs. To achieve multi-disciplinary synergies among these four critical dimensions, a collaborative approach framework based on spatial data infrastructure is required. Thus, this work provides academics and practitioners with a holistic view of sustainable UUS development.
A good understanding of the effects of galvanizing on the short- and long-term behaviours of steel components is essential for structural design. This review paper is motivated by a series of recent reports on cracking in galvanized cold-formed tubular steel structures and the limitations of current steel product standards and steel design specifications in this field. The steel-related and galvanizing-related factors, different pre-galvanizing countermeasures for brittle cracking and the available technical documents are summarized. An extensive bibliography is provided as a basis for future research and development in this field.
Design is a goal-oriented planning activity for creating products, processes, and systems with desired functions through specifications. It is a decision-making exploration: the design outcome may vary greatly depending on the designer’s knowledge and philosophy. Integrated design is one type of design philosophy that takes an interdisciplinary and holistic approach. In civil engineering, structural design is such an activity for creating buildings and infrastructures. Recently, structural design in many countries has emphasized a performance-based philosophy that simultaneously considers a structure’s safety, durability, serviceability, and sustainability. Consequently, integrated design in civil engineering has become more popular, useful, and important. Material-oriented integrated design and construction of structures (MIDCS) combine materials engineering and structural engineering in the design stage: it fully utilizes the strengths of materials by selecting the most suitable structural forms and construction methodologies. This paper will explore real-world examples of MIDCS, including the realization of MIDCS in timber seismic-resistant structures, masonry arch structures, long-span steel bridges, prefabricated/on-site extruded light-weight steel structures, fiber-reinforced cementitious composites structures, and fiber-reinforced polymer bridge decks. Additionally, advanced material design methods such as bioinspired design and structure construction technology of additive manufacturing are briefly reviewed and discussed to demonstrate how MIDCS can combine materials and structures. A unified strength-durability design theory is also introduced, which is a human-centric, interdisciplinary, and holistic approach to the description and development of any civil infrastructure and includes all processes directly involved in the life cycle of the infrastructure. Finally, this paper lays out future research directions for further development in the field.
Fracture and fatigue cracking in asphalt binder are two of most serious problems for pavement engineers. In this paper, we present a new comprehensive approach, which consists both of dimensional analysis using Buckingham
The design of high-rise buildings often necessitates ground excavation, where buildings are in close proximity to the construction, thus there is a potential for damage to these structures. This paper studies an efficient user-friendly framework for dealing with uncertainties in a deep excavation in layers of cemented coarse grained soil located in Tehran, Iran by non-deterministic Random Set (RS) method. In order to enhance the acceptability of the method among engineers, a pertinent code was written in FISH language of FLAC2D software which enables the designers to run all simulations simultaneously, without cumbersome procedure of changing input variables in every individual analysis. This could drastically decrease the computational effort and cost imposed to the project, which is of great importance especially to the owners. The results are presented in terms of probability of occurrence and most likely values of the horizontal displacement at top of the wall at every stage of construction. Moreover, a methodology for assessing the credibility of the uncertainty model is presented using a quality indicator. It was concluded that performing RS analysis before the beginning of every stage could cause great economical savings, while improving the safety of the project.
Scouring is one of the primary triggers of failure for bridges across rivers or seas. However, research concerning the scour mechanism of multi-wall foundations (MWFs) remains scarce, hindering the further application of MWFs. In this study, for the first time, the scouring effect caused by unidirectional flow around MWFs was examined numerically using FLOW-3D involving a large-eddy simulation. Initially, the applicability of the scouring model and input parameters was validated using a case study based on published measured data. Subsequently, the scouring effects of four MWFs with different wall arrangements and inflow angles, including the flow field analysis and scour pit and depth, were investigated thoroughly. It was found that the maximum scour depth of MWFs with an inflow angle of 0° was smaller than that of those with an inflow angle of 45°, regardless of the wall arrangement. Meanwhile, changing the inflow angle significantly affects the scour characteristics of MWFs arranged in parallel. In practical engineering, MWFs arranged in parallel are preferred considering the need for scouring resistance. However, a comparative analysis should be performed to consider comprehensively whether to adopt the form of a round wall arrangement when the inflow angle is not 0° or the inflow direction is changeable.
This study focuses on the bending failure performance of a shield tunnel segment. A full-scale test was conducted to investigate deformation and failure characteristics. During the loading, the bending failure process can be divided into four stages: the elastic stage, working stage with cracks, failure stage, and ultimate stage. The characteristic loads between contiguous stages are the cracking, failure, and ultimate loads. A numerical model corresponding to the test was established using the elastoplastic damage constitutive model of concrete. After a comparative analysis of the simulation and test results, parametric studies were performed to discuss the influence of the reinforcement ratio and proportion of tensile longitudinal reinforcement on the bearing capacity. The results indicated that the change in the reinforcement ratio and the proportion of tensile longitudinal reinforcement had little effect on the cracking load but significantly influenced the failure and ultimate loads of the segment. It is suggested that in the reinforcement design of the subway segment, the reinforcement ratio and the proportion of tensile longitudinal reinforcement can be chosen in the range of 0.7%–1.2% and 49%–55%, respectively, allowing the segment to effectively use the reinforcement and exert the design strength, thereby improving the bearing capacity of the segment.
High viscosity asphalt (HVA) has been a great success as a drainage pavement material. However, the larger porosity of drainage asphalt mixtures weakens the cohesion and adhesion and leads to premature rutting, water damage, spalling and cracking. The purpose of this study was to investigate the rheological properties of HVA prepared using different high viscosity modifiers through conventional tests, Brookfield viscosity tests, dynamic shear rheometer tests and bending beam rheometer tests. The conventional performance results demonstrated SBS + rubber asphalt (SRA-1/2) exhibited excellent elastic recovery and low-temperature flexibility. The 60°C dynamic viscosity results indicated TPS + rubber asphalt (TRA) had the excellent adhesion. The rotational viscosity results and rheological results indicated that SRA-2 not only exhibited excellent temperature stability and workability, as well as excellent resistance to deformation and rutting resistance, but also exhibited excellent low-temperature cracking resistance and relaxation performance. Based on rheological results, the PG classification of HVA was 16% rubber + asphalt for PG76-22, 20% rubber + asphalt for PG88-22, TRA and SRA-1/2 for PG88-28. From comprehensive evaluation of the viscosity, temperature stability and sensitivity, as well as high/low temperature performance of HVA, SRA-2 was found to be more suited to the requirements of drainage asphalt pavement materials.
In order to study the bearing performance of a new type of prefabricated subway station structure (PSSS), firstly, a three-dimensional finite element model of the PSSS was established to study the nonlinear mechanics and deformation performance. Secondly, the bearing mechanism of a PSSS was investigated in detail. Finally, the development law of damages to a thin-walled prefabricated component and the failure evolution mechanism of a PSSS were discussed. The results showed that this new type of the PSSS had good bearing capacity. The top arch structure was a three-hinged arch bearing system, and the enclosure structure and the substructure were respectively used as the horizontal and vertical support systems of the three-hinged arch structure to ensure the integrity and stability of the overall structure. Moreover, the tongue-and-groove joints could effectively transmit the internal force between the components and keep the components deformed in harmony. The rigidity degradation of the PSSS caused by the accumulation of damages to the spandrel, hance, arch foot, and enclosure structure was the main reason of its loss of bearing capacity. The existing thin-walled components design had significant advantages in weight reduction, concrete temperature control, components hoisting, transportation and assembly construction, which achieved a good balance between safety, usability and economy.
In structural health monitoring (SHM), the measurement is point-wise but structures are continuous. Thus, input estimation has become a hot research subject with which the full-field structural response can be calculated with a finite element model (FEM). This paper proposes a framework based on the dynamic stiffness theory, to estimate harmonic input, reconstruct responses, and to localize damages from seriously deficient measurements. To begin, Fourier transform converts the dynamic equilibrium equation to an equivalent static one in the frequency domain, which is under-determined since the dimension of measurement vector is far less than the FEM-node number. The principal component analysis has been adopted to “compress” the under-determined equation, and formed an over-determined equation to estimate the unknown input. Then, inverse Fourier transform converts the estimated input in the frequency domain to the time domain. Applying this to the FEM can reconstruct the target responses. If a structure is damaged, the estimated nodal force can localize the damage. To improve the damage-detection accuracy, a multi-measurement-based indicator has been proposed. Numerical simulations have validated that the proposed framework can capably estimate input and reconstruct multi-types of full-field responses, and the damage indicator can localize minor damages even with the existence of noise.
A frequency error estimation is presented for the isogeometric free vibration analysis of Kirchhoff–Love cylindrical shells using both quadratic and cubic basis functions. By analyzing the discrete isogeometric equations with the aid of harmonic wave assumption, the frequency error measures are rationally derived for the quadratic and cubic formulations for Kirchhoff–Love cylindrical shells. In particular, the governing relationship of the continuum frequency for Kirchhoff–Love cylindrical shells is naturally embedded into the frequency error measures without the need of explicit frequency expressions, which usually are not trivial for the shell problems. In accordance with these theoretical findings, the 2nd and 4th orders of frequency accuracy are attained for the isogeometric schemes using quadratic and cubic basis functions, respectively. Numerical results not only thoroughly verify the theoretical convergence rates of frequency solutions, but also manifest an excellent magnitude match between numerical and theoretical frequency errors for the isogeometric free vibration analysis of Kirchhoff–Love cylindrical shells.
To research the axial compression behavior of steel reinforced recycled concrete (SRRC) short columns confined by carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP) strips, nine scaled specimens of SRRC short columns were fabricated and tested under axial compression loading. Subsequently, the failure process and failure modes were observed, and load-displacement curves as well as the strain of various materials were analyzed. The effects on the substitution percentage of recycled coarse aggregate (RCA), width of CFRP strips, spacing of CFRP strips and strength of recycled aggregate concrete (RAC) on the axial compression properties of columns were also analyzed in the experimental investigation. Furthermore, the finite element model of columns which can consider the adverse influence of RCA and the constraint effect of CFRP strips was founded by ABAQUS software and the nonlinear parameter analysis of columns was also implemented in this study. The results show that the first to reach the yield state was the profile steel in the columns, then the longitudinal rebars and stirrups yielded successively, and finally RAC was crushed as well as the CFRP strips was also broken. The replacement rate of RCA has little effect on the columns, and with the substitution rate of RCA from 0 to 100%, the bearing capacity of columns decreased by only 4.8%. Increasing the CFRP strips width or decreasing the CFRP strips spacing could enhance the axial bearing capacity of columns, the maximum increase was 10.5% or 11.4%, and the ductility of columns was significantly enhanced. Obviously, CFRP strips are conducive to enhance the axial bearing capacity and deformation capacity of columns. On this basis, considering the restraint effect of CFRP strips and the adverse effects of RCA, the revised formulas for calculating the axial bearing capacity of SRRC short columns confined by CFRP strips were proposed.
The grade crossings and adjacent pavements of urban trams are generally subjected to complex load conditions and are susceptible to damage. Therefore, in this study, a novel pavement structure between tram tracks and roads constructed using polyurethane (PU) elastic concrete and ultra-high-performance concrete (UHPC), referred to as a track-road transitional pavement (TRTP), is proposed. Subsequently, its performance and feasibility are evaluated using experimental and numerical methods. First, the mechanical properties of the PU elastic concrete are evaluated. The performance of the proposed structure is investigated using a three-dimensional finite element model, where vehicle-induced dynamic and static loads are considered. The results show that PU elastic concrete and the proposed combined TRTP are applicable and functioned as intended. Additionally, the PU elastic concrete achieved sufficient performance. The recommended width of the TRTP is approximately 50 mm. Meanwhile, the application of UHPC under a PU elastic concrete layer significantly reduces vertical deformation. Results of numerical calculations confirmed the high structural performance and feasibility of the proposed TRTP. Finally, material performance standards are recommended to provide guidance for pavement design and the construction of tram-grade crossings in the future.
In the recent era, piled raft foundation (PRF) has been considered an emergent technology for offshore and onshore structures. In previous studies, there is a lack of illustration regarding the load sharing and interaction behavior which are considered the main intents in the present study. Finite element (FE) models are prepared with various design variables in a double-layer soil system, and the load sharing and interaction factors of piled rafts are estimated. The obtained results are then checked statistically with nonlinear multiple regression (NMR) and artificial neural network (ANN) modeling, and some prediction models are proposed. ANN models are prepared with Levenberg–Marquardt (LM) algorithm for load sharing and interaction factors through backpropagation technique. The factor of safety (FS) of PRF is also estimated using the proposed NMR and ANN models, which can be used for developing the design strategy of PRF.
