Dynamic failure process of expanded polystyrene particle lightweight soil under cyclic loading using discrete element method

Expanded polystyrene(EPS)particle-based lightweight soil,which is a type of lightweight filler,is mainly used in road engineering.The stability of subgrades under dynamic loading is attracting increased research attention.The traditional method for studying the dynamic strength characteristics of soils is dynamic triaxial testing,and the discrete element simulation of lightweight soils under cyclic load has rarely been considered.To study the meso-mechanisms of the dynamic failure processes of EPS particle lightweight soils,a discrete element numerical model is established using the particle flow code(PFC)software.The contact force,displacement field,and velocity field of lightweight soil under different cumulative compressive strains are studied.The results show that the hysteresis curves of lightweight soil present characteristics of strain accumulation,which reflect the cyclic effects of the dynamic load.When the confining pressure increases,the contact force of the particles also increases.The confining pressure can restrain the motion of the particle system and increase the dynamic strength of the sample.When the confining pressure is held constant,an increase in compressive strain causes minimal change in the contact force between soil particles.However,the contact force between the EPS particles decreases,and their displacement direction points vertically toward the center of the sample.Under an increase in compressive strain,the velocity direction of the particle system changes from a random distribution and points vertically toward the center of the sample.When the compressive strain is 5%,the number of particles deflected in the particle velocity direction increases significantly,and the cumulative rate of deformation in the lightweight soil accelerates.Therefore,it is feasible to use 5%compressive strain as the dynamic strength standard for lightweight soil.Discrete element methods provide a new approach toward the dynamic performance evaluation of lightweight soil subgrades.

Influence of volume compression on the unloading deformation behavior of red sandstone under damage-controlled cyclic triaxial loading

A reasonable evaluation of unloading deformation characteristics is of great significance for the effective analysis of deformation and stability of surrounding rocks after underground excavation.In this study,the damage-controlled cyclic triaxial loading tests were conducted to investigate the pore compaction mechanism and its influences on the unloading deformation behavior of red sandstone,including Young’s modulus,Poisson’s ratio,volumetric strain,and irreversible strain.The experimental results show that the increases of volumetric and irreversible strains of rocks can be attributed to the compaction mechanism,which almost dominates the entire pre-peak deformation process.The unloading deformation consists of the reversible linear and nonlinear strains,and the irreversible strain under the influence of the porous grain structure.The pre-peak Young’s modulus tends to increase and then decrease due to the influence of the unloading irreversible strain.However,it hardly changes with the increasing volumetric strain compaction under the influence of reversible nonlinear strain.Instead,the initial unloading tangent modulus is highly related to the volumetric strain,and clearly reflects the compaction state of red sandstone.Furthermore,both the reversible nonlinear and irreversible unloading deformations are independent of confining pressure.This study is beneficial for the theoretical modeling and prediction of cyclic unloading deformation behavior of red sandstone.

Field testing of stiffened deep cement mixing piles under lateral cyclic loading

Construction of seaside and underground wall bracing often uses stiffened deep cement mixed columns （SDCM）. This research investigates methods used to improve the level of bearing capacity of these SDCM when subjected to cyclic lateral loading via various types of stiffer cores. Eight piles, two deep cement mixed piles and six stiffened deep cement mixing piles with three different types of cores, H shape cross section prestressed concrete, steel pipe, and H-beam steel, were embedded though soft clay into medium-hard clay on site in Thailand. Cyclic horizontal loading was gradually applied until pile failure and the hysteresis loops of lateral load vs. lateral deformation were recorded. The lateral carrying capacities of the SDCM piles with an H-beam steel core increased by 3-4 times that of the DCM piles. This field research clearly shows that using H-beam steel as a stiffer core for SDCM piles is the best method to improve its lateral carrying capacity, ductility and energy dissipation capacity.

Testing and modeling of cyclically loaded rock anchors

The Norwegian Public Roads Administration(NPRA) is planning for an upgrade of the E39 highway route at the westcoast of Norway. Fixed links shall replace ferries at seven fjord crossings. Wide spans and large depths at the crossings combined with challenging subsea topography and environmental loads call for an extension of existing practice. A variety of bridge concepts are evaluated in the feasibility study. The structures will experience significant loads from deadweight, traffic and environment. Anchoring of these forces is thus one of the challenges met in the project. Large-size subsea rock anchors are considered a viable alternative. These can be used for anchoring of floating structures but also with the purpose of increasing capacity of fixed structures. This paper presents first a thorough study of factors affecting rock anchor bond capacity. Laboratory testing of rock anchors subjected to cyclic loading is thereafter presented. Finally, the paper presents a model predicting the capacity of a rock anchor segment, in terms of a ribbed bar, subjected to a cyclic load history. The research assumes a failure mode occurring in the interface between the rock anchor and the surrounding grout. The constitutive behavior of the bonding interface is investigated for anchors subjected to cyclic one-way tensile loads. The model utilizes the static bond capacity curve as a basis, defining the ultimate bond sbuand the slip s1 at τ. A limited number of input parameters are required to apply the model. The model defines the bond-slip behavior with the belonging rock anchor capacity depending on the cyclic load level(τcy/τ), the cyclic load ratio(R= τcy/τcy), and the number of load cycles(N). The constitutive model is intended to model short anchor lengths representing an incremental length of a complete rock anchor.

Evolution of mechanical parameters of Shuangjiangkou granite under different loading cycles and stress paths

Surrounding rocks at different locations are generally subjected to different stress paths during the process of deep hard rock excavation.In this study,to reveal the mechanical parameters of deep surrounding rock under different stress paths,a new cyclic loading and unloading test method for controlled true triaxial loading and unloading and principal stress direction interchange was proposed,and the evolution of mechanical parameters of Shuangjiangkou granite under different stress paths was studied,including the deformation modulus,elastic deformation increment ratios,fracture degree,cohesion and internal friction angle.Additionally,stress path coefficient was defined to characterize different stress paths,and the functional relationships among the stress path coefficient,rock fracture degree difference coefficient,cohesion and internal friction angle were obtained.The results show that during the true triaxial cyclic loading and unloading process,the deformation modulus and cohesion gradually decrease,while the internal friction angle gradually increases with increasing equivalent crack strain.The stress path coefficient is exponentially related to the rock fracture degree difference coefficient.As the stress path coefficient increases,the degrees of cohesion weakening and internal friction angle strengthening decrease linearly.During cyclic loading and unloading under true triaxial principal stress direction interchange,the direction of crack development changes,and the deformation modulus increases,while the cohesion and internal friction angle decrease slightly,indicating that the principal stress direction interchange has a strengthening effect on the surrounding rocks.Finally,the influences of the principal stress interchange direction on the stabilities of deep engineering excavation projects are discussed.

Dynamic performance of angle-steel concrete columns under low cyclic loading-I:Experimental study

This paper describes low cyclic loading testing of nine angle-steel concrete column （ASCC） specimens. In the tests, the influence of the shear-span ratio, axial compression ratio and shear steel plate ratio on the hysteretic behavior, energy dissipation, strength degradation, stiffness degradation, skeleton curve and ductility of the ASCCs is studied. Based on the test results, some conclusions are presented. The P-A and sectional M -φ hysteretic models for the ASCCs are presented in a companion paper （Zheng and Ji, 2008）.

Experimental study of hollow rectangular bridge column performance under vertical and cyclically bilateral loads

To investigate the seismic performance of hollow reinforced concrete （RC） bridge columns of rectangular cross section under constant axial load and cyclically biaxial bending, five specimens were tested. A parametric study is carried out for different axial load ratios, longitudinal reinforcement ratios and lateral reinforcement ratios. The experimental results showed that all tested specimens failed in the flexural failure mode and their ultimate performance was dominated by flexural capacity, which is represented by the rupture/buckling of tensile longitudinal rebars at the bottom of the bridge columns. Biaxial force and displacement hysteresis loops showed significant stiffness and strength degradations, and the pinching effect and coupling interaction effect of both directions severely decrease the structural seismic resistance. However, the measured ductility coefficient varying from 3.5 to 5.7 and the equivalent viscous damping ratio varying from 0.19 and 0.26 can meet the requirements of the seismic design. The hollow RC rectangular bridge columns with configurations of lateral reinforcement in this study have excellent performance under bidirectional earthquake excitations, and may be considered as a substitute for current hollow RC rectangular section configurations described in the Guideline for Seismic Design of Highway Bridges （JTG/T B02-01-2008）. The length of the plastic hinge region was found to approach one sixth of the hollow RC rectangular bridge column height for all specimen columns, and it was much less than those specified in the current JTG/T. Thus, the length of the plastic hinge region is more concentrated for RC rectangular hollow bridge columns.

Numerical modeling of centrifuge cyclic lateral pile load experiments

To gain insight into the inelastic behavior of piles, the response of a vertical pile embedded in dry sand and subjected to cyclic lateral loading was studied experimentally in centrifuge tests conducted in Laboratoire Central des Ponts et Chaussees. Three types of cyclic loading were applied, two asymmetric and one symmetric with respect to the unloaded pile. An approximately square-root variation of soil stiffness with depth was obtained from indirect in-flight density measurements, laboratory tests on reconstituted samples, and well-established empirical correlations. The tests were simulated using a cyclic nonlinear Winkler spring model, which describes the full range of inelastic phenomena, including separation and re-attachment of the pile from and to the soil. The model consists of three mathematical expressions capable of reproducing a wide variety of monotonic and cyclic experimentalp-y curves. The physical meaning of key model parameters is graphically explained and related to soil behavior. Comparisons with the centrifuge test results demonstrate the general validity of the model and its ability to capture several features of pile-soil interaction, including： soil plastification at an early stage of loading, ＂pinching＂ behavior due to the formation of a relaxation zone around the upper part of the pile, and stiffness and strength changes due to cyclic loading. A comparison of the p-y curves derived from the test results and the proposed model, as well as those from the classical curves of Reese et al. （1974） for sand, is also presented.

Settlement and Stability Analysis on Soft Clay Under Cyclic Loading

The results of undrained cyclic triaxial tests on three types of clays are collected and a relationship among the accumulated strain, the initial stress state, cyclic stress in the soil, as well as the number of cycles is established based on the experimental data. With this relationship, a procedure is proposed for subsidence and stability analysis on soft clay under the action of cyclic loads.

Dynamic properties and liquefaction behaviour of cohesive soil in northeast India under staged cyclic loading

Estimation of strain-dependent dynamic soil properties, e.g. the shear modulus and damping ratio, along with the liquefaction potential parameters, is extremely important for the assessment and analysis of almost all geotechnical problems involving dynamic loading. This paper presents the dynamic properties and liquefaction behaviour of cohesive soil subjected to staged cyclic loading, which may be caused by main shocks of earthquakes preceded or followed by minor foreshocks or aftershocks, respectively. Cyclic triaxial tests were conducted on the specimens prepared at different dry densities （1.5 g/cm3 and 1.75 g/cm3） and different water contents ranging from 8% to 25%. The results indicated that the shear modulus reduction （G/Gmax） and damping ratio of the specimen remain unaffected due to the changes in the initial dry density and water content. Damping ratio is significantly affected by confining pressure, whereas G/Gmax is affected marginally. It was seen that the liquefaction criterion of cohesive soils based on single-amplitude shear strain （3.75% or the strain at which excess pore water pressure ratio becomes equal to 1, whichever is lower） depends on the initial state of soils and applied stresses. The dynamic model of the regional soil, obtained as an outcome of the cyclic triaxial tests, can be successfully used for ground response analysis of the region.

Effects of axial cyclic loading at constant confining pressures on deformational characteristics of anisotropic argillite

Triaxial cyclic loading tests have been performed to assess the influence of plastic deformation on inelastic deformational properties of anisotropic argillite with bedding planes which is regarded as a kind of transversely isotropic media.Considering argillite's anisotropy and inelastic deformational properties,theoretical formulae for calculating oriented elastic parameters were deduced by the unloading curves,which can be better fitted for the description of its elasticity than loading curves.Test results indicate that with the growth of accumulated plastic,strain,the apparent elastic modulus of argillite decreases in a form of exponential decay function,whereas the apparent Poisson ratio increase in a form of power equation.A ratio of unloading recoverable strain to the total strain increment occurred during a loading cycle is defined to illustrate the characteristic relations between anisotropic coupled elasto-plastic deformation and plastic strain.It is significant to observe that high stress level and plastic history have an inhibiting effect on argillite anisotropy.

Behavior of Pile Group with Elevated Cap Subjected to Cyclic Lateral Loads

The pile group with elevated cap is widely used as foundation of offshore structures such as turbines, power transmission towers and bridge piers, and understanding its behavior under cyclic lateral loads induced by waves, tide water and winds, is of great importance to designing. A large-scale model test on 3×3 pile group with elevated cap subjected to cyclic lateral loads was performed in saturated silts. The preparation and implementation of the test is presented. Steel pipes with the outer diameter of 114 mm, thickness of 4.5 mm, and length of 6 m were employed as model piles. The pile group was cyclic loaded in a multi-stage sequence with the lateral displacement controlled. In addition, a single pile test was also conducted at the same site for comparison. The displacement of the pile cap, the internal forces of individual piles, and the horizontal stiffness of the pile group are presented and discussed in detail. The results indicate that the lateral cyclic loads have a greater impact on pile group than that on a single pile, and give rise to the significant plastic strain in the soil around piles. The lateral loads carried by each row of piles within the group would be redistributed with loading cycles. The lateral stiffness of the pile group decreases gradually with cycles and broadly presents three different degradation patterns in the test. Significant axial forces were measured out in some piles within the group, owing to the strong restraint provided by the cap, and finally lead to a large settlement of the pile group. These findings can be referred for foundation designing of offshore structures.

Experimental study of seismic cyclic loading effects on small strain shear modulus of saturated sands

The seismic loading on saturated soil deposits induces a decrease in effective stress and a rearrangement of the soil-particle structure, which may both lead to a degradation in undrained stiffness and strength of soils. Only the effective stress influence on small strain shear modulus Gmax is considered in seismic response analysis nowadays, and the cyclic shearing induced fabric changes of the soil-particle structure are neglected. In this paper, undrained cyclic triaxial tests were conducted on saturated sands with the shear wave velocity measured by bender element, to study the influences of seismic loading on Gmax. And Gmax of samples without cyclic loading effects was also investigated for comparison. The test results indicated that Gmax under cyclic loading effects is lower than that without such effects at the same effective stress, and also well correlated with the effective stress variation. Hence it is necessary to reinvestigate the determination of Gmax in seismic response analysis carefully to predict the ground responses during earthquake more reasonably.

Simplified method for analyzing soil slope deformation under cyclic loading

Reasonable assessment of slope deformation under cyclic loading is of great significance for securing the safety of slopes. The observations of centrifuge model tests are analyzed on the slope deformation behavior under cyclic loading conditions. The potential slip surface is the key for slope failure and follows two rules:(i) the relative horizontal displacement along the potential slip surface is invariable at an elevation, and(ii) the soil along the slip surface exhibits the same degradation pattern. These rules are effective regardless of the location of the potential slip surface throughout the entire deformation process of a homogeneous slope, ranging from the initial deformation stage to the failure process and to the post-failure stage. A new, simplified method is proposed by deriving the displacement compatibility equation and unified degradation equation according to the fundamental rules. The method has few parameters that can be determined through traditional element tests. The predictions from the proposed method agree with the centrifuge test results with vertical loading and shaking table loading. This result confirms that the proposed method is effective in predicting the full deformation process of slopes under different cyclic loading conditions.

轻钢龙骨混凝土复合外挂墙板力学性能试验研究

复合墙板性能关系着结构的安全,在新设计建造的轻钢龙骨复合墙板投入使用前应进行力学性能试验,以评估其安全性能。为研究墙板的受力变形过程及破坏形态,对两片不同的轻钢龙骨混凝土复合外挂墙板分别进行四点弯曲试验和低周反复荷载试验。弯曲试验结果表明,弯曲过程中墙板出现裂缝时的计算等效均布荷载大于建筑风荷载标准值,抗弯性能满足受力要求。墙板经历了弹性阶段、弹塑性变形阶段和屈服破坏阶段,主要通过钢材屈服后的弹塑性变形和材料的破坏来实现耗能,屈服前耗能占总耗能的6.19%,屈服后累计耗能呈现二次抛物线增长,这一结果体现了墙板良好的抗震能力。研究结果可为实际应用提供依据。

水平双轴加载下带翼缘RC 剪力墙抗震性能试验研究

为了揭示双轴耦合效应对不同截面形式带翼缘RC剪力墙多维抗震性能的影响,对3个T形截面和2个L形截面RC剪力墙分别沿其主轴方向进行了低周往复加载试验,对比分析了水平单、双轴加载下带翼缘RC剪力墙的破坏特征、滞回特性、承载力、延性、极限位移角、耗能能力与钢筋应变。研究表明:T形墙和L形墙的破坏均呈现出明显的非对称性,即破坏集中于墙肢自由端,双轴加载加重了带翼缘RC剪力墙的开裂和损伤程度,且易引起剪力墙局部损伤集中;与单轴加载相比,双轴加载不仅削弱了带翼缘RC剪力墙各受力方向的承载力与变形能力、增大了腹板塑性铰区弯曲变形在总变形中的占比、加速了耗能进程、降低了单个方向的耗能能力,并且增大了腹板与翼缘竖向钢筋的应变以及翼缘的剪力滞后效应;双轴耦合效应对L形墙损伤的影响较T形墙更为显著,并导致双轴加载下L形墙各抗震性能指标的衰减程度大于T形墙。考虑双轴受力后,中国抗震规范关于RC剪力墙层间位移角的限值仍较为安全,但安全冗余度降低。

双层圆钢管混凝土长柱压扭滞回性能试验

为研究双层圆钢管混凝土长柱在压、扭荷载作用下的力学性能,利用研制的Stewart六自由度加载平台,进行了两个普通圆钢管混凝土长柱和两个双层圆钢管混凝土长柱试件在纯扭、压扭作用下的低周往复试验。对比分析了各试件的承载力、扭转变形、耗能、滞回性能,进行了有限元参数分析。研究表明:普通圆钢管混凝土长柱和双层圆钢管混凝土长柱均具有较好的抗扭能力;与普通圆钢管混凝土长柱相比,双层圆钢管混凝土长柱的初始刚度和承载力略有提升,滞回曲线更饱满,耗能能力和延性大幅提升;参数分析表明含钢率一定时,内层钢管径厚比越大,对抗扭越有利;一定范围内的轴向荷载,可提高钢管混凝土柱的抗扭能力。

水平受荷桩“p-y+M-θ”分析方法

中国近海海上风电机组开发建设中,大直径单桩基础形式使用占比超70%。现行p-y曲线设计方法主要适用于小直径柔性桩,对大直径单桩侧向及桩底受荷描述能力不足,导致其严重低估刚柔性桩和刚性桩(分别常用于中国和欧洲的近海风电工程)的变形和承载能力,过于保守的设计给海上风电降本带来挑战。为此建立了能以统一的方式预测柔性、刚柔性和刚性单桩水平单调受荷响应的“p-y+M-θ”模型,并将该模型推广到循环荷载下单桩的响应分析。通过与相关试验结果比对发现,“p-y+M-θ”模型能较为准确地预测桩基水平加载响应。力图为水平受荷单桩工程设计提供简洁而可行的响应分析方法。

装配整体式梁柱节点的抗震性能对比研究

目的 研究预制柱纵筋间距放大后装配整体式T型节点和十字型节点的抗震性能,为工程设计提供依据。方法 对5个足尺梁柱节点试件进行低周往复荷载试验,通过对比各试件的滞回曲线、骨架曲线和位移延性等,研究了节点类型、柱纵筋间距和轴压比对梁柱节点抗震性能的影响。结果 装配式节点均发生梁端弯曲破坏,预制柱和节点核心区未见明显破坏,破坏主要是预制梁端底部纵筋屈服和梁端底部混凝土压碎脱落;楼板加强了叠合梁的抗负弯矩能力,叠合梁上部现浇混凝土和预制混凝土交界面出现明显的水平剪切裂缝;柱纵筋间距放大后,与对比试件相比,T型节点的承载力提高了9.2%,十字型节点的承载力提高了1.3%。结论 柱纵筋间距放大试件的延性和耗能能力与对比试件相差不大,柱纵筋间距放大对梁柱节点的抗震性能影响不大;十字型节点和T型节点位移延性系数相差不大。

双层带钢板暗支撑装配整体式混凝土剪力墙抗震性能研究

为研究带钢板暗支撑装配整体式混凝土剪力墙的抗震性能,设计制作1片双层带钢板暗支撑装配整体式混凝土剪力墙和1片双层带钢板暗支撑现浇混凝土剪力墙,其中装配整体式剪力墙内置钢板暗支撑在墙身与基础梁和上下墙身水平连接节点处采用双面角焊缝连接以适应施工时的安装尺寸冗余度要求。对试件进行低周反复加载试验,结果表明:采用双面角焊缝连接预制墙身内置钢板暗支撑可以适应较大的施工冗余度,并且保证暗支撑传力的可靠性;装配整体式剪力墙具有和现浇剪力墙等同的水平承载力、刚度退化水平和耗能能力;2个构件均为弯曲破坏,但装配整体式剪力墙在一层墙体后浇带与预制墙身接缝处也产生塑性铰。