Search results for "Structural engineering"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
Flexural behaviour of glulam timber beams reinforced with FRP cords
2015
Abstract Glued laminated timber (glulam) is widely used as a construction material to make up lightweight and large span structures. The basic principle of this material consists in bonding together a number of layers of dimensioned timber with structural adhesives, in order to increase strength and stiffness of the member, and allowing to make up sustainable structures with great visual impact. Recent applications showed the effectiveness of fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites in enhancing the structural performances of glulam beams, with particular reference on their flexural and shear strength. In fact FRP reinforcements could be used to strengthen existing structures or to reduce …
Influence of axial force and corrosion on failure of prestressed concrete structures considering M-V interaction
2021
Abstract Existing prestressed concrete structures suffer from degradation of prestressing for two main reasons: a defect of the sheath infills (cement grout) of bonded tendons, and corrosion of steel strands. These two causes, often concomitant, lead to a reduction over time of the effectiveness of initial prestressing, in addition to the ordinary tension losses due to concrete shrinkage and creep, and to steel relaxation. In many cases a consequence of bad grouting in bonded tendons is that the structure shows an intermediate behavior between that of external prestressing and that of internal bonded prestressing. This, added to damage to wires due to corrosion, makes it essential for the d…
Low-velocity impact behaviour of green epoxy biocomposite laminates reinforced by sisal fibers
2020
Abstract Due to its good mechanical characteristics, low cost and high availability in the current market, sisal fiber is one of the most used for the manufacturing of biocomposites in various industrial fields (automotive, marine, civil construction etc.). The particular sub-fibrillar structure of the sisal fiber (similar to aramid fibers) and the corresponding anisotropic behavior detected by recent research activities, suggest that such biocomposites should exhibit also high impact strength, in such a way to permit their advantageously use also for the manufacturing of crashworthy components (bumpers, helmets, protection systems etc.), that are at the same time also eco-friendly, lightwe…
Forces and deformations of the abdominal wall—A mechanical and geometrical approach to the linea alba
2011
Force-elongation responses of the human abdominal wall in the linea alba region were determined by tensile tests in which the linea alba was seen to exhibit a nonlinear elastic, anisotropic behavior as is frequently observed in soft biological tissues. In addition, the geometry of the abdominal wall was determined, based on MRI data. The geometry can be specified by principal radii of curvature in longitudinal of approximately 470 mm and in the transverse direction of about 200 mm. The determined radii agree with values found in other studies. Mechanical stresses, deformations and abdominal pressures for load cases above 6% elongation can be related using Laplace's formula and our constitut…
Risk of failure in existing RC balcony and strength verification under degradation phenomena
2020
Abstract In the present paper, the safety conditions of reinforced concrete (RC) balconies subject to degradation phenomena caused by carbonation, presence of chlorides or water infiltration were examined. After a brief review of the typical damages of balconies occurring with detachments of plaster and bricks expulsion, some cases of collapses of balconies recently occurred were presented. Therefore, a calculation model was proposed for a hand verification of the flexural and shear strength of existing corroded T beams cast in place of lightened RC orthotropic slabs forming the balcony and for the calculus of deflection including slippage of steel bars. Diffused and pitting corrosion on st…
Experimental in situ behaviour of unreinforced masonry elements retrofitted by pre-tensioned stainless steel ribbons
2014
Abstract The results of in situ tests carried out on unreinforced and reinforced poor rubble masonry full-scale walls in the earthquake prone Messina (Italy) area are presented and discussed. This experimental research was aimed at the assessment of the in plane shear behaviour of ancient masonry strengthened with an innovative system for masonry and retrofitting of reinforced concrete element constituted by three-dimensional pre-tensioned stainless steel ribbons. A comparison between different strengthening configurations was made in order to characterise the behaviour of masonry panels under shear-compression load, focusing attention on the diagonal cracking failure mode. The effectivenes…
A new method for generating fully isotropic laminates
2002
In this paper the authors propose some new kinds of isotropic laminates, made with identical anisotropic layers. In particular, these laminates satisfy some conditions which generalise the well-known Werren and Norris rules, in order to obtain fully isotropy, that is, isotropy of the three tensors A, B and D. To this purpose, the authors utilise some results found in a preceding research, namely the so-called quasi-trivial solutions. The way to form particular isotropic laminates that do not follow the Werren and Norris rule is also indicated. The paper ends with some numerical examples which illustrate the theoretical results found.
Masonry columns confined with fabric reinforced cementitious matrix (FRCM) systems: A round robin test
2021
Abstract The conservation and the preservation of existing masonry buildings, most of them recognized as cultural heritage, require retrofitting techniques that should reduce the invasiveness and assure reversibility and compatibility with the substrate. In this perspective, the strengthening system should be able to improve the bearing capacity of the structural member and, at the same time, to assure mechanical and material compatibility. The use of Fabric Reinforced Cementitious Matrix (FRCM) composites is now recognized to be suitable for these purposes. Indeed, the inorganic matrix has comparable properties with respect to the existing historical mortars while the fabric has relevant t…
Failure Map of Composite Laminate Mechanical Joint
2007
The aim of this research is to investigate the pin/hole contact stress of a composite laminate and failure modes when submitted to tensile bearing tests. The limit loads and failure modes are evaluated as a function of pin diameter and hole position. Analyzing the joint geometry effect on the fracture mechanisms, a failure map is obtained, identifying three regions of typical failure modes of mechanically fastened joints. A theoretical approach is proposed to identify the field of each fracture mode to obtain a simple experimental methodology to support the design of a particular joint laminate. In addition, a simplified numerical model is proposed to evaluate near the hole the stress/stra…
Impact behaviour of flax/epoxy composite plates
2015
This paper presents an experimental investigation of the impact behaviour of flax/epoxy composite plates submitted to low-velocity transverse impact. Low energy drop-weight impact tests have been performed on two types of quasi-isotropic flax/epoxy composites, rectangularly shaped with edges lengths of 142 mm × 94 mm and 2.85 mm thick. Residual properties have been assessed by compression after impact tests. A detailed description of damage development, especially the increase of the rear face crack with respect to the impact energy is given by the microscopic observation. The influence of impact damage on the residual strength is described. A loss of 15%–30% in compression resistance was n…