Search results for "Structural engineering"
showing 10 items of 1998 documents
Mechanical Behavior of Steel Fiber-Reinforced Concrete Beams Bonded with External Carbon Fiber Sheets
2017
This study investigates the mechanical behavior of steel fiber-reinforced concrete (SFRC) beams internally reinforced with steel bars and externally bonded with carbon fiber-reinforced polymer (CFRP) sheets fixed by adhesive and hybrid jointing techniques. In particular, attention is paid to the load resistance and failure modes of composite beams. The steel fibers were used to avoiding the rip-off failure of the concrete cover. The CFRP sheets were fixed to the concrete surface by epoxy adhesive as well as combined with various configurations of small-diameter steel pins for mechanical fastening to form a hybrid connection. Such hybrid jointing techniques were found to be particularly adva…
Experimental application of digital image correlation for the tensile characterization of basalt FRCM composites
2021
Abstract Composites made with inorganic matrix, namely fabric reinforced cementitious mortar (FRCM) composites are becoming widespread as strengthening materials for existing masonry structures. These composites are made of a dry grid of fibres embedded in an inorganic matrix. FRCMs can be considered a valid alternative to traditional organic composites such as fibre reinforced polymers (FRPs) because of their better compatibility with the masonry support. This work presents an experimental study for the tensile characterization of a basalt fabric reinforced cementitious mortar (BFRCM) composite. Tensile tests were carried out on coupons reinforced with one, two or three layers of grid to i…
A DIC-based study of flexural behaviour of roving/mat/roving pultruded composites
2015
Abstract This paper reports a study of the flexural behaviour and resultant failure modes in E-glass/polyester pultruded composites. The digital image correlation (DIC) method is used to estimate the effect of fibre orientation on failure behaviour in thick beams, taking into account the presence of continuous filament mat layer (CFM) in the stacking sequence. In particular, the tests were carried out for specimens with off-axis angle of 0°, 7.5°, 15°, 30°, 45° and 90°. The crack initiation and the failure mechanisms depend on the mutual interaction between the stiffness properties of different areas in the stacking sequence. An influence index (I) was introduced to evaluate the magnitude o…
Numerical analysis of masonry structures via interface models
2001
The present paper is devoted to the theoretical formulation and numerical implementation of an interface model suitable to simulate the behavior of mortar joints in masonry structures. The interface laws are formulated in the framework of elasto-plasticity for non-standard materials in order to simulate the softening response which occurs along the decohesion process in presence of shear and tension tractions. A variable material dilatancy parameter is introduced together with a further geometrical dilatancy related to the roughness of contact surfaces after joint fracture. An asperity model is adopted with the aim to describe the evolution of the contact surface shape during the loss of co…
Damage and plasticity at the interfaces in composite materials and structures
2009
Abstract The structural behavior at the interface between two surfaces of ductile, brittle or quasi-brittle materials is studied by a new analytical elastoplastic damaging model. The model is developed in the framework of a thermodynamically consistent theory. The Helmholtz free energy is written to predict the materials’ hardening or softening. An isotropic damage is considered and the possible effects of dilatancy are taken into account including non-associative flow rules. The interface laws are presented both in a rate and a discrete incremental form. The analytical formulation is then implemented into a finite element code and two structural members are studied to validate the model. T…
Testing the USLE-M family of models at the Sparacia experimental site in south Italy
2017
The modified Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE-M) was empirically deduced by a statistical analysis of the original data set of soil loss measurements used to derive the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE). The USLE-M, including the effect of runoffin the event rainfall-runofferosivity factor, is characterized by a better capacity to predict event soil loss. At first, in this paper, using the soil erosion representative variables of USLE-M and the reference condition adopted in the USLE, the dimensional analysis and the self-similarity theory are applied to theoretically deduce a multiplicative equation similar to the USLE-M. Then using the database of the Sparacia experimental site, the a…
New Theoretical Solution of Stage-Discharge Relationship for Slit Weirs
2018
In this paper, the flow-process of a slit weir was analyzed on the basis of a theorem of dimensional analysis and incomplete selfsimilarity theory. The theoretically deduced stage-discharge formula then was calibrated using experimental data obtained for a ratio between the weir and the channel width, ranging from 0.05 to 0.25. The deduced stage-discharge relationship allowed measuring discharge values characterized by errors that, for 98% of the measured values, were less than or equal to 5%. The performance of the proposed theoreticalstage-discharge formula also was improved by introducing the Reynolds number (for 98.5% of the measured values the error was less than or equal to 5%, and th…
Analytical prediction of ultimate moment and curvature of RC rectangular sections in compression
2013
This paper presents closed form expressions linking the ultimate bearing capacity to the ultimate curvature of rectangular RC sections subjected to axial load and bending moment acting in one of the two symmetry planes of the section. With respect to possible simplified formulations the following effects are also considered: confinement of the concrete, hardening of the longitudinal reinforcement, and presence of reinforcing bars distributed orthogonally to the neutral axis. The formulation is proposed in dimensional terms after a preliminary definition of the geometrical and mechanical parameters governing the structural response of the class of sections considered. The analytical expressi…
Modelling mode choice for freight transport using advanced choice experiments
2015
Abstract In this paper we use advanced choice modelling techniques to analyse demand for freight transport in a context of modal choice. To this end, a stated preference (SP) survey was conducted in order to estimate freight shipper preferences for the main attributes that define the service offered by the different transport modes. From a methodological point of view, we focus on two critical issues in the construction of efficient choice experiments. Firstly, in obtaining good quality prior information about the parameters; and secondly, in the improved quality of the experimental data by tailoring a specific efficient design for every respondent in the sample. With these data, different …
Random analysis of geometrically non-linear FE modelled structures under seismic actions
1990
Abstract In the framework of the finite element (FE) method, by using the “total Lagrangian approach”, the stochastic analysis of geometrically non-linear structures subjected to seismic inputs is performed. For this purpose the equations of motion are written with the non-linear contribution in an explicit representation, as pseudo-forces, and with the ground motion modelled as a filtered non-stationary white noise Gaussian process, using a Tajimi-Kanai-like filter. Then equations for the moments of the response are obtained by extending the classical Ito's rule to vectors of random processes. The equations of motion, and the equations for moments, obtained here, show a perfect formal simi…