Study on time-varying seismic vulnerability and analysis of ECC-RC composite piers using high strength reinforcement bars in offshore environment

As the main seismic component of a bridge,seismic damage to the bridge pier has a greater effect on its subsequent service.In the offshore chloride environment,the issues(e.g.,reinforcement bar corrosion and attenuation of concrete strength)of piers caused by chloride ion seriously curtail the normal service life and deteriorate the anti-seismic property of bridge structures.The engineered cementitious composite(ECC)-reinforced concrete(RC)composite pier with high strength reinforcement bars(HSRB)is expected to solve the above problems.This study aims to clarify the time-varying seismic vulnerability(SV)of the HSRBECC-RC composite pier during its full life cycle(FLC).Based on OpenSees,the refined finite element analysis models of RC pier,ECC-RC composite pier,and HSRBECC-RC composite pier have been established.Moreover,using the nonlinear time-path dynamic analysis method,the influence of chloride ion erosion on the time-dependent seismic vulnerability(SV)of these different piers in different service life and different peak ground acceleration(PGA)were analyzed from a dynamic point of view.The research shows that the exceeding probability(EP)of the same damage level increases with the enhancement of service time and PGA and with the increase of destruction,the exceeding probability(EP)of slight damage(DL-1),moderate damage(DL-2),serious damage(DL-3),and complete collapse(DL-4)decreases in turn;the corrosion degree of chloride ion to piers is small during the early service period,the time-varying vulnerability curve of the bridge piers is almost the same as that of a new bridge,and during later service,as the extent of chloride ion corrosion deepens,exceeding probability(EP)under severe damage(DL-3)and complete collapse(DL-4)is increased,and the seismic performance is significantly enhanced.

Seismic performance of steel reinforced ultra high-strength concrete composite frame joints

To investigate the seismic performance of a composite frame comprised of steel reinforced ultra high-strength concrete （SRUHSC） columns and steel reinforced concrete （SRC） beams, six interior frame joint specimens were designed and tested under low cyclically lateral load. The effects of the axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio were studied on the characteristics of the frame joint performance including crack pattern, failure mode, ductility, energy dissipation capacity, strength degradation and rigidity degradation. It was found that all joint specimens behaved in a ductile manner with flexural-shear failure in the joint core region while plastic hinges appeared at the beam ends. The ductility and energy absorption capacity of joints increased as the axial load ratio decreased and the volumetric stirIup ratio increased. The displacement ductility coefficient and equivalent damping coefficient of the joints fell between the corresponding coefficients of the steel reinforced concrete （SRC） frame joint and RC frame joint. The axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio have less influence on the strength degradation and more influence on the stiffness degradation. The stiffness of the joint degrades more significantly for a low volumetric stirrup ratio and high axial load ratio. The characteristics obtained from the SRUHSC composite frame joint specimens with better seismic performance may be a useful reference in future engineering applications.

Fabrication and Mechanical Properties of 2024 Aluminum Alloy Reinforced by FeNiCrCoAl_3 High Entropy Particles

This article mainly discussed bulk material lHvl^ared by powder metallurgy, and the commercial 2024 aluminum alloy powder and FeNiCrCoA13 high entropy alloy powder （both produced by argon gas atomization process） were ball-milled for different hours. The prepared powder was consolidated by hot extrusion method. The microstruetures of the milled powder and bulk alloy were examined by X - Ray Diffraction （XRD）, Scanning Electron Microscopy （SEM） and Transmission Electron Microscopy （TEM）. The thermal stability was tested by differential scanning calorimetry （DSC）. Mechanical properties of the extruded alloy were examined by Vickers hardness tester and mechanical testing machine. The results show that after milling, the mixed particle sizes and microstructures of the alloy powder change obviously. The compressive strength of the extruded alloy has reached 580 MPa under certain conditions of milling time and composition.

Experimental Study on Performance of Multidirectional Geogrid and Its Application in Engineering of High Slope

By analyzing the grille mechanical property, tensile strength and creep tests, and the fi eld tests, we investigated the characteristics and the reinforcement principle of multidirectional geogrid, and obtained the effect factors of grid characteristics, load and time curve and the shear stress of grille and sand interface. The reinforcement effect of geogrid in combination of typical project cases was illustrated and the following conclusions were presented. Firstly, multidirectional geogrid has ability to resist structural deformation, node distortion or soil slippage under stress, and can effectively disperse load. Secondly, with the increase of tensile rate, grille intensity increases and the creep value also increases with the increase of load. Thirdly, the frictional resistance balance between horizontal thrust of damaged zone and reinforced soil in stable region can avoid slope failure due to excessive lateral deformation. Fourthly, the multidirectional geogrid is able to withstand the vertical, horizontal and diagonal forces by combing them well with three-dimensional orientation, realizing the purpose of preventing soil erosion and slope reinforcement, which has a wide range of application and development in engineering fi eld.

Seismic Behavior of Steel Reinforced Ultra High Strength Concrete Column and Reinforced Concrete Beam Connection

To investigate the seismic behavior of connections composed of steel reinforced ultra high strength concrete (SRUHSC) column and reinforced concrete (RC) beam, six interior strong-column-weak-beam connection specimens were tested subjected to reversal cyclic load. Effects of applied axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio on ductility, energy dissipation capacity, strength degradation and rigidity degradation were discussed. It was found that all connection specimens failed in bending in a ductile manner with a beam plastic hinge. The ductility and energy dissipation capacity increased with the decrease of applied axial load ratio or increase of volumetric stirrup ratio. The displacement ductility coefficient and equivalent damping coefficient lay between those of steel reinforced ordinary concrete connection and those of reinforced concrete connection. The applied axial load ratio and volumetric stirrup ratio had less influence on the strength degradation and more influence on the stiffness degradation. The stiffness degraded sharply with the decrease of volumetric stirrup ratio or increase of applied axial load ratio. The experimental results indicate that SRUHSC column and RC beam connection exhibited better seismic performance and can provide reference for engineering application.

High Temperature Creep behaviour of a Si_3N_4 Whisker Reinforced Al-Fe-V-Si Composite

The creep behaviour of β-Si3N4 whisker reinforced Al-8.5Fe-1.3V-1.7Si composite has been investigated at the temperature 773 and 823 K. The results are characterized by high stress exponent and high apparent creep activation energy The creep data can be interpreted based on the incorporation of a threshold Stress and a load transfer coefficient into the power-law creep equation. A good correlation between the normalized creep rate and normalized effective stress is available which demonstrates that the creep behaviour of both the alloy and the composite is controlled by the matrix lattice self-diffusion in AI. EXamination on microstructure shows that edge dislocations exist at the interfaces between two adjacent whiskers and the intedeces emit edge dislocations in parallel paired-columns.

Durability of Concrete Subjected to the Combined Actions of Flexural Stress,Freeze-thaw Cycles and Bittern Solutions

Freeze-thaw durabilities of three types of concretesnormal portland cement concrete （OPC）, high strength concrete （HSC） and steel fiber reinforced high strength concrete （SFRHSC） were systemically investigated under the attacks of chemical solution, and combination of external flexural stress and chemical solution. Four kinds of bitterns from salt lakes in Sinkiang, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia and Tibet provinces of China were used as chemical attack solutions. The relative dynamic modulus （RDM） was used as an index for evaluating the damage degree during the course of chemical attack and stress corrosion. The experimental results show that the freeze-thaw durability of concrete is visibly reduced in the present of the flexural stress, i e, stress accelerates the damage process. In order to quantify the stress accelerated effect, a stress accelerating coefficient was proposed. The stress accelerating coefficient is closely related with the types of bitterns and the numbers of freeze-thaw cycles is. The more numbers of freeze-thaw cycles is, the greater the stress accelerating coefficient for various concretes will be. In addition, there also exists a critical ratio of external stress to the maximum flexural stress. If the stress ratio exceeds the critical one, the freeze-thaw durability of various concretes will be greatly decreased compared to the responding concretes without applied stress. The critical stress ratio of OPC, HSC and SFRHSC is 0.30, 0.40 and 0.40, respectively, indicating that HSC and SFRHSC have advantages over OPC and are suitable to use in the bittern erosion regions.

Passive Control Reinforced Concrete Frame Mechanism with High Strength Reinforcements and Its Potential Benefits Against Earthquakes

Severe earthquakes continue to cause major catastrophes. Many devices in active, hybrid, and semi-active structural control systems which are used as controllable force devices are costly to build and maintain. The passive control reinforced concrete frame （PCRCF） reinforced with high strength steel only in the columns presented here provides structural systems more resistance to lateral earthquake loadings at comparatively lower cost. The effectiveness is demonstrated by a nonlinear static analysis using fiber model for a single story single bay frame. The study shows that the use of high performance steel in columns prevents formation of plastic hinges at the critical column base sections and failures are always initiated by reinforcement yielding at the beam ends. Furthermore, after experiencing severe lateral drift, the passive control design has small residual displacements compared to ordinary reinforced concrete frames. PCRCF rehabilitation and strengthening can be achieved more easily as compared with ordinary reinforced concrete frame.

Research,Development,and Production of V-N Microalloyed High Strength Rebars for Building in China

The research,production,and application of V-N microalloyed high strength rebars in China were reviewed.Enhanced nitrogen in vanadium-containing rebars promotes the precipitation of fine V（C,N）particles,and markedly improves the precipitation strengthening effectiveness of vanadium.Therefore,vanadium added to V-N microalloyed rebars can be reduced by 40% compared to the same strength level of vanadium-containing rebars.

Behavior of High Performance PVA Fiber Reinforced Cement Composites in Triaxial Compression

Based on an extensive experimental program,the paper studies the behavior of HPFRCC under triaxial compression. The experimental parameters are lateral confining pressure and PVA fiber content by volume. The test results indicate that ultimate strength and peak strain are significantly improved with the increases of confining pressure. The confining effect introduced by the fibers becomes minor in triaxial compression tests,where there is relatively high external confining pressure. The axial stress-strain curves with different confining pressure and different PVA fiber content by volume are obtained. Lateral confining pressure constraints the lateral expansion of HPFRCC,so there is a big plastic deformation with its ultimate strength improved. At lower confining pressure,PVA fiber content by volume has some effect on the decreased section of stress-strain curve. According to test results,the paper establishes formula of confining pressure with ultimate strength and axial peak strain respectively.

Field Study of HPTRM Combined with Vegetation and Anchor to Protect Newly Excavated Expansive Soil Slope

Anchor reinforced vegetation system(ARVS)comprises high performance turf reinforcement mats(HPTRM),vegetation and anchors.It is a new attempt to apply the system in expansive soil slope protection.The goal of this paper was to evaluate the effectiveness of ARVS in protecting newly excavated expansive soil slopes.The field tests on the bare slope,grassed slope and ARVS protective slope were carried out,including natural and artificial rainfall.During the test,the soil water content,soil deformation,and anchor axial force were monitored,and then the slope protection mechanism of ARVS was analyzed.It was found that ARVS can effectively protect expansive soil slopes compared with bare slopes and grassed slopes.The vegetation and HPTRM form a reinforced turf,and the anchors fix it to the slope surface,thus restraining the expansion deformation.The axial force on the anchor of ARVS includes frictional resistance and tensile force transmitted by HPTRM,which is maximum at the early stage of support.The neutral point of the anchor of ARVS moves deeper under atmospheric action,but the vegetation and HPTRM on the slope surface can limit this movement.