As an efficient and robust tool in handling uncertainties, the first-order reliability method (FORM) is proposed for engineering problems under epistemic uncertainty. The method, namely dynamical relaxed directional method (DRD) coupled with an improved cuckoo search algorithm (ICOA) as DRD-ICOA consists of two numerical local and global analyzers, in which local analyzer performs reliability estimation

Embedded steel ring (ESR)–foundation connections are widely used in onshore wind turbines (WTs) to transfer the loads from the tower to the foundation. The load-bearing behaviour of the ESR–foundation connection greatly impacts on the structural integrity of onshore WTs under ultimate loads. The complex geometry, load-bearing mechanism and composite behaviour of the ESR–foundation connection present

The accuracy of different fire design methodologies for hollow cross-sections subject to compression and major-axis bending is studied and compared in this paper. For that purpose, a numerical model based on shell finite elements is developed and validated against existing experimental results available in the literature. Comprehensive numerical parametric studies are then carried out by means of the

This study focuses on investigating the effect of one or more open stories in reinforced concrete hilly buildings. Two building configurations, i.e., (i) stepback and (ii) split-foundation, with three different story ratios, are considered. Open stories are provided at different levels in a building according to the prospective location of the approach road level. These buildings are subjected to bi-directional

The presence of capillary pressure in unsaturated soils may, under certain circumstances, significantly affect the stability of a slope and the safety of a structure standing in the vicinity of its crest. More specifically, the change in saturation induced by a rainfall event may directly influence the value of apparent soil cohesion potentially resulting in excessive permanent slope displacements

The paper investigates seismic response control of bridges with nonlinear tuned vibration absorbers (n-TVAs). A three-span continuous bridge is used as case study. The n-TVAs are designed to act in both longitudinal and transverse directions of the bridge. The n-TVAs are modelled as inelastic springs with bilinear hysteretic behavior. A simple and effective method to design the parameters of the n-TVAs

Honeycomb is widely used because of its excellent energy absorption characteristics during compression. However, offset defects in the manufacturing process are inevitable and affect the energy absorption characteristics. In order to study the effect of offset defect, the finite element model was established firstly. The verified finite element model was used to simulate the honeycomb structure under

Cantilevered roof is particularly vulnerable to wind because high suction loads often occur on the rooftop due to flow separation. However, wind load characteristics associated with cantilevered roof have not been fully understood. In this paper, a 1/100 scale model of a cantilevered roof, over a grandstand, has been tested in a turbulent boundary layer flow, with particular emphasis on characterizing

The problem of model order reduction and dynamic characteristic analysis of the bolted flange structure with free-free boundary conditions is studied by proposing a novel simplified modeling method. The proposed simplified modeling method is able to reduce the finite element model of the linear components through free-interface mode synthesis method and condense the number of degree-of-freedom of the

Since they offer many alternatives for shopping, eating, resting, etc. many people spend a considerable time in shopping mall buildings. Therefore, this type of building is increasing rapidly. The increment rate was almost three in Turkey for the last decade. The recently released seismic code of the country has some serious alterations such as increased seismicity of some regions and reduced performance

Laboratory experiments were conducted to define the response to earthquake loading of the exposed column-base connections common in low-rise steel frame structures. Six full-scale column-base connections with four internal anchor bolts were prepared and tested to failure under major- and minor-axis cyclic loading. The parameters varied were the size and thickness of the base plate and the diameter

The bridges play an important transportation hub in the transportation lifeline system. The sea-crossing bridges located in earthquake-prone areas may be subjected to earthquake and wave action during their lifetime. This paper mainly investigates the seismic performance of continuous rigid frame bridges supported by group pile foundations based on the seismic fragility analysis. Based on the OpenSees

When designing structural systems, the relation between form and structure is not always considered, because architects and engineers work independently. Structures with mutual collaboration such as surface-active (e.g., shells) when well-designed can optimize specific behaviors. This work proposes an analysis of some parameters that influence the dynamic behavior of footbridges under rhythmic loading

A novel aluminium foam-filled circular-triangular nested tube (AFCTNT) energy absorber was developed in this study, and its energy absorption behaviour under impact loading was experimentally and numerically studied. Drop-weight impact tests on the AFCTNT energy absorbers with different volumes of aluminium foam filler were first conducted to obtain their energy absorption parameters, force–displacement

The objective of this research is to facilitate the design process of innovative steel and concrete hybrid coupled wall system, which is obtained through the connection of a reinforced concrete (RC) wall to two steel side columns by means of steel links. To this end, a group of 120 innovative hybrid coupled wall systems subjected to a set of 100 far-field ground motions are selected. Thousands of nonlinear

Central cone silo with high blending efficiency can be a key part of the production process in cement industry. Filling and discharge tests of central cone silos with different aspect ratios are conducted via a multi-scale experimental program to investigate the flow pattern of the stored material and the pressure distribution on the wall and cone. The filling tests imply the wall pressure increases

Spatial and temporal temperature variations in bridge structures due to changes in the surrounding climate produce movements which, if restrained, may induce stresses in the structure. Temperature effects have always been considered to be one of the critical issues that affect the performance of prestressed concrete (PC) bridges. In order to (1) develop an efficient temperature loading model for predicting

The damage suffered by elevated water tanks in previous seismic events can be generally attributed to poor performance of their frame-type supporting structure. It is pivotal to quantify the damage experienced by these tanks in damage states in order to ascertain their performance. In this study, the nonlinear response of frame-supported elevated water tanks is investigated using performance-based

Resilient infrastructure is nowadays attracting attention when designing new infrastructure projects. However, many countries around the world still have a large stock of existing transport infrastructure, such as railways and roads. In particular, masonry bridges are significantly widespread in Europe. These bridges, built a long time ago could suffer structural damage due to earthquakes, as their

This paper presents an experimental investigation on the dynamic mechanical performance of S30408 austenitic stainless steel (ASS) under elevated temperatures, which is essential for determining the behaviour of structures made with this type of steel subjected to the coupled fire and impact/explosion. For this purpose, the quasi-static and dynamic compression tests using Split Hopkinson Pressure Bar

This paper presents an experimental study on the bond characteristics of both sand-coated and ribbed-surface glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) bars embedded in high-performance concrete (HPC). A total of 145 pullout tests were conducted in order to examine the effect of varying parameters on the bond characteristics, namely: embedment length, bar diameter, surface treatment, concrete cover and

This study presents an experimental and analytical investigation on central crack tearing properties of PTFE coated fabric. Firstly, tearing tests under uniaxial tension load were carried out to investigate the influence of crack length and crack orientation on tearing properties of PTFE coated fabric. Tear failure process was carefully recorded and two types of failure modes can be characterized,

Reinforced concrete structures located in coastal areas face durability-related concerns such as reinforcing steel's corrosion due to aggressive and humid environments. An accidental fire in such a scenario can lead to a severe loss of mechanical properties and load-carrying capacity. This paper examines the load–deflection response of short-span RC beams on account of exposure to combinations of corrosion-induced

The seismic performance of rectangular shear walls reinforced with high-strength bars has been studied in depth, however limited research exists on the hysteretic performance of T-shaped walls built with high-strength reinforcement. As part of this study, two T-shaped shear walls reinforced with Grade HRB600 bars, and subjected to different axial load ratios (0.05 & 0.1), were tested under cyclic loading

This paper presents an experimental study on the post-fire static and fatigue properties of steel wires, which is the basic component of bridge suspender. In these tests, the effect of exposure temperatures, duration of heating time, cooling methods and prestress in steel wires during heating process was investigated. It is observed that the residual strengths (including static and fatigue strengths)

Collaboration between constructional materials is the basis for superior structural performance. The inherent inferior properties of recycled aggregate concrete weaken the bond performance with steel tubes. This study investigated several methods to enhance the bond behavior between recycled aggregate concrete and steel tubes, for instance adding steel fibers, adjusting the water-binder ratio, introducing

The mechanical behavior of rockfall impacts on shed slabs was studied in three aspects: the rockfall impact force, the inertia effect coefficient, and the structural damage evaluation. A test model composed of a concrete slab and a cushion layer was constructed. Nine batches of impact experiments with energies ranging from 50 to 250 kJ were conducted. The dynamic impact model was established using

This paper presents a state-of-the-art review of significant studies published on coupled buildings. The approach of connecting two adjacent buildings has been effectively applied to reduce structural responses of a coupled building which is subjected to seismic excitation. The coupled building control utilizes two adjacent structures to transfer dynamic force which is applied to each other in order

Based on a virtual crack extension (VCE) technique in finite element method (FEM), this paper proposes a rational method of calculating weight functions for inclined shear cracked RC beams with any geometry. As an inclined shear crack in an RC beam is geometrically determined by the absolute dimensions, shear span to beam depth ratio, crack inclined angle and crack initiation location, the relations

Harnessing the concept of inertial amplification, an inertial amplifier coupled base isolator (IABI) is proposed in this paper. The seismic performance, in terms of story drift, base shear reduction, of this proposed inertial amplifier coupled base isolator has been compared with that of the classical base isolator (CBI) and inerter-based isolation system (Inerter-BI). A thorough analytical study,

The observed failures in recent earthquakes have demonstrated the out-of-plane vulnerability of unreinforced masonry walls. An extensive experimental investigation was conducted on the application of hooked steel fibers as reinforcement in concrete overlays for the out-of-plane strengthening of solid clay brick masonry prisms. The variables included the thickness of the overlay (20, 30, and 40 mm)

The construction industry is currently undergoing an increasing demand to boost productivity and improve system efficiencies. Clients are demanding increasingly more customised products at a more competitive cost, speed, and quality. Yet current design systems and existing literature largely overlook the use of automated decision-making tools for supporting mass-customisation for prefabricated buildings

Masonry structures comprise a significant portion of the historical building stock all over the world. Previous studies have clearly pointed out that unreinforced masonry buildings are vulnerable against extreme loading conditions, such as seismic actions. Therefore, strengthening is inevitable in most cases for historical masonry to withstand severe loads. In this paper, the efficiency of fabric reinforced

This study was to verify an idea that improves the robustness of adhesive anchors, which usually consists of a threaded rod inserted into a drilled hole in concrete with adhesives acting as bonding agent. Bond on adhesive-concrete interfaces can be affected by many factors, including installation conditions, service conditions, and adhesive materials. The innovation is about creating threads/grooves

The Resilient Slip Friction Joint (RSFJ) is a relatively new friction damper developed and introduced in New Zealand. It is used in structures to dissipate the earthquake energy with the advantage of re-centring the structure back to its upright position. This paper investigates the experimental and analytical behaviour of the RSFJ when it is affected by the second-order effect (SOE) both in the damper

Production of self-compacting high-strength concrete (SCHSC) needs a colossal quantity of cement, which is perilous for the environment and economy. Researchers are intended to lower down the dependency on this cement and seeking for alternate green materials. The incorporation of industrial by-products together with mineral admixtures has been found suitable to minimize aforesaid problems. This investigation

Despite the popularity of precast concrete (PC) composite beams in urban construction, some shortcomings still exist in application. These include easy cracking, poor deformation ability, susceptibility to impact damage. To solve the above problems, engineered cementitious composites (ECC) are applied in the tension zone of PC beam specimens to improve the mechanical properties. Eleven specimens are

Coastal bridges exposed to the marine environment always suffer from non-uniform corrosion along the pier height. As the non-uniform corrosion increase, the material properties of the pier in the splash and tidal zone deteriorates significantly, affecting the seismic performance of the pier. In this study, four scaled bridge pier specimens were designed and fabricated. These specimens were subjected

Jointed, prestressed columns have been shown to enable accelerated construction and to offer superior seismic performance, as compared with cast-in-place columns without prestressing. During an earthquake, such columns deform primarily through concentrated rotations at the joints, and special detailing at the ends of the columns prevents crushing and spalling. Unbonded prestressing steel, running vertically

Steel-concrete composite beams have been used in bridge construction for decades. Novel demountable bolted shear connectors, that allow bridge disassembly and offer high level of prefabrication, are proposed for the connection of the deck with the steel beams, as an alternative to the conventional headed studs. In terms of sustainability, bolted shear connectors facilitate the replacement of deteriorating

In this paper, a simplified modeling and analysis method for skyscrapers with an outrigger system is introduced. The simplified method is mainly based on the superelements and dominant degree of freedom methods, and it is codified by using MATLAB software. The simplified method results are verified with analysis results of the ETABS detailed model, where static, modal, and dynamic analyses are conducted

Tubed-reinforced-concrete (TRC) columns are gaining increasing popularity in engineering constructions, however, research on their fire performance is still limited and mainly focused on concentrically-loaded columns. In this study, extensive numerical analysis was carried out to investigate the performance of square and rectangular TRC columns under eccentric loading and exposed to ISO 834 standard

Deep-water bridges located in a V-shape canyon may suffer from spatially varying ground motions due to the canyon topography. This paper focused on the effect of canyon topography on the seismic responses of a deep-water continuous rigid-frame bridge that crosses a V-shape canyon. The ground motions in three example sites with different topography conditions were simulated by the numerical spectral

In real engineering, with the gradual deterioration of mining geological conditions, the improvement of the bearing performance of fully grouted bolts is beneficial to better control of the roadway surrounding rock. For this purpose, based on the idea of steel fiber reinforced concrete, a systematic laboratory study was conducted to investigate the effect of steel fiber grout on the bearing performance

In this study, the flexural vibration behavior of the variable cross-section box-girder bridge with corrugated steel webs is investigated using the energy variational method in conjunction with the extended spline finite point method. Detailed equations are provided for analyzing the dynamic characteristics of simply supported girders with flexural vibration. To predict the dynamic characteristics

This study investigated the capacity of finite element modelling (FEM) approaches to predict the experimentally obtained behaviour of concrete-filled spiral-welded stainless-steel tube (CF-SWSST) short and long columns. Using the ABAQUS software, FEM was carried out of 24 CF-SWSST column tests. Nominal outside diameter to thickness ratios, effective length to diameter ratios and load eccentricity to

A hybrid double-skin tubular column (DSTC) is a modern composite column with concrete sandwiched between outer fibre-reinforced polymer (FRP) and inner steel tube. Recently, a new variation form of DSTC, called stiffened DSTC, has evolved with longitudinal stiffeners provided on the outer surface of the inner steel tube. The stiffened DSTCs have better composite action between the DSTC components and

SiC/SiC ceramic matrix composites (CMCs) exhibit significant randomness of damage processes under load. In this study, a simplified simulation method was established based on the macroscopic damage constitutive model, characteristics of fewer test samples, and complex data sources for determining the randomness of the material behavior. Moreover, the established model was verified by introducing an

To mitigate the deficiency of the conventional steel frames, a novel steel frame system using rocking truss (SFWRT) and self-centering energy dissipative devices (SCED) was developed. The SCED consists of structural members, pre-tension tendons, abutting element and friction dissipation devices, which exhibits excellent self-centering and energy dissipation capacity. This new structural system is analyzed

Shear walls of cold-formed steel (CFS) with high aspect ratios could be used in buildings with large openings such as doors and windows. However, the performance of CFS shear walls with high aspect ratios remains unclear due to limited test data. This research aimed to explore the mechanic performance and strength reduction factor of CFS shear walls with high aspect ratios through an experimental study

Spatial arch footbridges represent an innovative answer to demands on functionality, structural optimization and aesthetics for curved decks, popular in urban contexts. This paper presents a methodology, and its implementation as a tool in a parametric design environment, for the fast determination of the antifunicular shape of spatial arch bridges supporting a curved deck of an arbitrary geometry

Relative displacements are introduced between steel bridges and continuously welded rail (CWR) tracks as the bridge girders expand and contract due to thermal effects. Depending on the fastening profile between the CWRs and steel bridge girders, additional forces are transmitted between the two, and when rail compression forces are introduced at the transition zones of the bridge, the risk of track

Multi-objectives optimization problems are often solved constructing the Pareto front and applying a decision-making strategy to select the preferred solution among the Pareto-optimal solutions. With the aim to reduce the computational effort in multi-objective optimization problems, this paper presents a procedure for the direct evaluation of the preferred updated model, without the need to evaluate

In this paper, performance based a fire resistance design method for evaluating the flexural carrying capacity of reinforced concrete (RC) beams has been proposed. The developed method is associated with a simple heat transfer model for RC beams subjected to the unsteady state heat transfer at transient heating boundary condition with three basic heating mechanism, i.e., conduction, convection and

In this paper, the mechanical properties of polyvinyl chloride (PVC)-coated woven fabric at high-temperature and after exposure to high-temperature were studied using a uniaxial tensile test. The test temperature range is 20 °C to 170 °C. The high-temperature test shows that the maximum stress at 170 °C reduced to 57%−59% of that at 20 °C. The after exposure to high-temperature test of prestressing

Following an earthquake event, the safety of continued occupancy in terms of whether a mainshock-damaged building could withstand upcoming strong aftershocks is a key question for stakeholders. To answer this question, the residual collapse capacity of mainshock-damaged buildings should be evaluated, and in this way, an accurate assessment of the structural damage inflicted during a mainshock-aftershock