Stiffness Degradation Characteristics Destructive Testing and Finite-Element Analysis of Prestressed Concrete T-Beam

The failure behavior of the precast prestressed concrete T girder was investigated by destructive test and finite-element analysis,and the mid-span deflection,girder stiffness and the variation of the cross section strain in the loading process were obtained,and the mechanical properties,mechanical behavior,elastic and plastic behavior and ultimate bearing capacity of T girder with large span were revealed.Furthermore,the relationship between the beam stiffness degradation,the neutral axis in cross-section,steel yielding and concrete cracking are investigated and analyzed.A method was proposed to predict the residual bearing capacity of a bridge based on the variation of the position of the cross section strain distribution and the section neutral axis,which provided a theoretical basis for predicting the stiffness detection and carrying capacity assessment of prestressed concrete beam.

Discussion on Detection and Evaluation of Simply Supported Prestressed Concrete Small Box Girder Bridge After a Fire

The article takes a simply supported prestressed concrete small box girder bridge project as an example for inspection and evaluation after a fire incident.This includes appearance detection,concrete color hardness detection,concrete strength detection,concrete surface damage layer detection,reinforcement protective layer detection,and concrete carbonation detection.It is hoped that this analysis can be used as a reference for the detection and evaluation of future bridge projects with fire incidents to smoothen its subsequent repair and maintenance.

Design on the Prestressed Concrete Frame Beam-column

A bidirectional ribbed concrete beam slab structure was widly adopted for the upper space of industrial buildings.To maintain ample space and minimize the presence of conventional columns,a bidirectional prestressed concrete beam is often employed.The intersection node of the prestressed concrete frame beam column was characterized by a high density of steel reinforcement,significant structural loads,and complex construction requirements.To ensure the quality,safety,and progress of prestressed frame beamcolumn intersection nodes during construction,this article proposed a new technology for constructing such nodes,which includes setting the tensioning and haunching ends of nodes at different positions,using ABAQUS finite element software to optimize the design of cross-sectional dimensions,conducting stress analysis simulations.

Finite element failure analysis of continuous prestressed concrete box girders

In order to analyze the load carrying capacity of prestressed concrete box girders, failure behaviors of in-situ deteriorated continuous prestressed concrete box girders under loading are experimentally observed and a finite failure analysis method for predicting behaviors of box girders is developed. A degenerated solid shell element is used to simulate box girders and material nonlinearity is considered. Since pre-stressed concrete box girders usually have a large number of curve prestressed tendons, a type of combined element is presented to simulate the prestressed tendons of box girders, and then the number of elements can be significantly reduced. The analytical results are compared with full-scale failure test results. The comparison shows that the presented method can be effectively applied to the failure analysis of in-situ continuous prestressed concrete box girders, and it also shows that the studied old bridge still has enough load carrying capacity.

Durability design of prestressed concrete structures

Based on the durability characteristics of prestressed concrete structures,the durability limit states of carbonation and chloride ion attack are defined, respectively.Durability predicting models on the basis of reliability mathematics and stochastic processes areconstructed, and the pure theoretical formulae of failure probability of prestressed concretestructures are analyzed. In addition, a simple durability design method for carbonation ofstructures is put forward. According to the analysis, the durability of prestressed concretestructures is superior to that of traditional structures. The research also indicates that theconcrete cover prescribed in the current code (GB 50010-2002) is not adequate. The rational coverthickness should notbe less than 35 or 45 mm according to carbonation or chloride ion attack,respectively.

Study on the Design Criteria for Prestressed Concrete Pavements

With a concrete pavement slab prestressed, its load carrying capacity can be significantly increased; thus a thinner slab may be used for the same loading. Prestressing modify the structural behavior of the pavement slab and there is a greater resistance to impact, vibration and overloading. This paper discusses the major design considerations necessary in the successful construction of prestressed concrete pavements and presents a design procedure developed to predict the compressive stress due to prestressing in the pavements at early stage, during service and after cracking. Variation in the approach for repetitive and nonrepetitive loads is clearly distinguished. Check on the recovery after cracking for overloading in prestressed pavements is also needed. Finally, a design example is illustrated the application of the approach developed.

Dynamic finite element model updating of prestressed concrete continuous box-girder bridge

The dynamic finite element model （FEM） of a prestressed concrete continuous box-girder bridge, called the Tongyang Canal Bridge, is built and updated based on the results of ambient vibration testing （AVT） using a real-coded accelerating genetic algorithm （RAGA）. The objective functions are defined based on natural frequency and modal assurance criterion （MAC） metrics to evaluate the updated FEM. Two objective functions are defined to fully account for the relative errors and standard deviations of the natural frequencies and MAC between the AVT results and the updated FEM predictions. The dynamically updated FEM of the bridge can better represent its structural dynamics and serve as a baseline in long-term health monitoring, condition assessment and damage identification over the service life of the bridge .

Temperature and Stress Analysis of An Experimental Model of Prestressed Lightweight Concrete Platform

This paper presents an experimental study of a prestressed lightweight concrete platform model with a tank and for five steel-columns. This platform can be used not only for extraction but also for storage of oil and is suitable for the Bohai Sea and other shallow seas of China. The platform is subjected to temperature. load, or both. The corresponding temperature distribution. strains, cracks. and vulnerable parts of the platform are analyzed respectively. By use of the finite element method and empirical formulas, the temperature field of the model is analyzed. The results agree with the experimental results, thereby verifying! the reliability of these two calculating methods. The paper provides an experimental basis for the des sign of the bearing capacity and normal service state of prestressed concrete platforms.

Theoretical analysis of natural frequency of externally prestressed concrete beam based on rigidity correction

A dynamic test on externally prestressed simply supported concrete beams separately with three typical types of tendon distributions was conducted. The results show that the natural frequencies of the beams increase with the increase in the prestressing force at the tensioning stage, and the natural frequencies decrease after the cracks occur in the beams. Following the calculation formula of natural frequency of externally prestressed beam, which was reported in a literature, the natural frequencies of the experimental beams are calculated, and big errors are found between the test results and the calculated ones of natural frequency values. As a result, this paper has tried to adopt two methods to correct the rigidity parameter of the concrete beam in the formula for natural frequency calculation, and to use the corrected formula to calculate the frequencies of the experimental beams. The calculation results indicate a good consistency with the experimental ones, which verifies the feasibility of the corrected formula.

Influence of key factors on deflection of bonded prestressed concrete simply supported slabs subjected to fire

In order to validate the accuracy of nonlinear fire simulation programs,comparison analysis is carried out between simulation and experiment induced from small-scale specimens,and then fire resistance of large-scale prestressed concrete slabs is further investigated through parameter expansion.The influences on fire resistance ratings controlled by deflection are explored and discussed,including effective span,concrete cover thickness,load level,prestress degree,effective prestress,composite reinforcement index and other factors.The calculated results indicate that fire resistance ratings of large-scale bonded prestressed concrete simply supported slabs are bigger than those of small-scale ones.Finally,the calculation formulas of fire resistance ratings controlled by deflection are established,which rationally consider the influence of effective span,concrete cover thickness,load level,composite reinforcement index and so on key factors.

Structural Behavior of Continuous Prestressed Steel Fiber Reinforced High Strength Concrete Beam

The flexural behaviors of continuous fully and partially prestressed steel fiber reinforced high strength concrete beams are studied by experiment and nonlinear finite element analysis. Three levels of partial prestress ratio （PPR） are considered, and three pairs of two-span continuous beams with box sections varying in size are designed. The major parameters involved in the study include the PPR and the fiber location. It is concluded that the prestressed high strength concrete beam exhibits satisfactory ductility; the influences of steel fiber on the crack behaviors for partially prestressed beams are not as obvious as those for fully prestressed ones; steel fibers can improve the structural stiffness after cracking for fully prestressed high strength concrete beams; the moment redistribution from mid-span to intermediate support in the first stage should be mainly considered in practical design.

Fatigue Damage Modeling for Partially Prestressed Concrete Beams under Repeated Loadings with Variable Amplitude

A full-range nonlinear analysis method for fatigue damage in prestressed concrete beams is presented. New damage accumulation models are proposed to describe the fatigue damage evolution in concrete and reinforcement respectively. Based on the stress analysis for cross section, the stress redistrbution in the fatigue damage process, due to the different damage mechanisms of concrete and reinforcement, is considered. The nonlinear damage analysis is achieved by means of piecewise linearity, and it is applicable on the condition of repeated loadings with variable amplitude. Fatigue damage modeling of a beam is implemented to illustrate that the proposed method can preferably fit the experimental results.

Load history-based model for prestressed concrete beam damage evaluation

The residual capability of a damaged structure to resist further load is essential in optimal seismic design and post-earthquake strengthening. An experimental study on the hysteretic characteristics of prestressed concrete frame beams under different loading histories was performed to explore the influence of load history on energy dissipation and failure characteristics of the member. Based on the test results, the failure of the beam is defined, and the relationship between the failure moment under cyclic load and from the skeleton curve is formulated. Finally, based on displacement and energy dissipation, a model for prestressed concrete beam damage-failure evaluation is developed. In this model, the effect of deformation level, cumulative dissipated energy, and loading history on prestressed concrete beam damage-failure is incorporated, thus it is applicable to stochastic earthquake forces.

Experimental and analytical studies on the vibration serviceability of long-span prestressed concrete floor

An extensive experimental and theoretical research study was undertaken to study the vibration serviceability of a long-span prestressed concrete floor system to be used in the lounge of a major airport.Specifically,jumping impact tests were carried out to obtain the floor’s modal parameters,followed by an analysis of the distribution of peak accelerations.Running tests were also performed to capture the acceleration responses.The prestressed concrete floor was found to have a low fundamental natural frequency（≈8.86 Hz）corresponding to the average modal damping ratio of≈2.17%.A coefficients plate with simply-supported edges.The calculated analytical results（natural frequencies and root-mean-square acceleration）agree well with the experimental ones.The analytical approach is thus validated.

Aseismic safety analysis of a prestressed concrete containment vessel for CPR1000 nuclear power plant

Abstract： The containment vessel of a nuclear power plant is the last barrier to prevent nuclear reactor radiation. Aseismic safety analysis is the key to appropriate containment vessel design. A prestressed concrete containment vessel （PCCV） model with a semi-infinite elastic foundation and practical arrangement of tendons has been established to analyze the aseismic ability of the CPR1000 PCCV structure under seismic loads and internal pressure. A method to model the prestressing tendon and its interaction with concrete was proposed and the axial force of the prestressing tendons showed that the simulation was reasonable and accurate. The numerical results show that for the concrete structure, the location of the cylinder wall bottom around the equipment hatch and near the ring beam are critical locations with large principal stress. The concrete cracks occurred at the bottom of the PCCV cylinder wall under the peak earthquake motion of 0.50 g, however the PCCV was still basically in an elastic state. Furthermore, the concrete cracks occurred around the equipment hatch under the design internal pressure of 0.4MPa, but the steel liner was still in the elastic stage and its leak-proof function soundness was verified. The results provide the basis for analysis and design of containment vessels.

Experimental Behavior of Partially Prestressed High Strength Concrete Beams

In the last few decades, prestressed concrete has been rapidly used in bridge engineering due to the enormous development in the construction techniques and the increasing need for long span bridges. High strength concrete has been also more widely spread than the past. It currently becomes more desirable as it has better mechanical properties and durability performance. Major defect of fully prestressed concrete is its low ductility;it may produce less alarming signs than ordinary reinforced concrete via smaller deflection and limited cracking. Therefore, partially prestressing is considered an intermediate design between the two extremes. So, combining high strength concrete with partial prestressing will result in a considerable development in the use of prestressed concrete structures regarding the economical and durability view points. This study presents the results of seven partially prestressed high strength concrete beams in flexure. The tested beams are used to investigate the influence of concrete compressive strength, prestressing steel ratio and flange width on the behavior of partially prestressed beams. The experimentally observed behaviors of all beams were presented in terms of the cracking load, ultimate load, deflection, cracking behavior and failure modes.

Experimental research on mechanical properties of prestressed truss concrete composite beam encased with circular steel tube

Tests of 4 simply supported unbonded prestressed truss concrete composite beams encased with circular steel tube were carried out. It is found that the ratio of the stress increment of the unbonded tendon to that of the tensile steel tube is 0.252 during the using stage,and the average crack space of beams depends on the ratio of the sum of the bottom chord steel tube's outside diameter and the secondary bottom chord steel tube's section area to the effective tensile concrete area. The coefficient of uneven crack distribution is 1.68 and the formula for the calculation of crack width is established. Test results indicate that the ultimate stress increment of unbonded tendon in the beams decreases in linearity with the increase of the composite reinforcement index β0. The pure bending region of beams accords with the plane section assumption from loading to failure. The calculation formula of ultimate stress increment of the unbonded tendon and the method to calculate the bearing capacity of normal section of beams have been presented. Besides,the method to calculate the stiffness of this sort of beams is brought forward as well.

Analysis and calculation of factors on curvature ductility of unbonded prestressed concrete beams

In consideration that behavior of curvature ductility of interior support directly influences the degree of moment modification of unbonded prestressed concrete (UPC) continuous structures, constitutive relationships of concrete, non-prestressed reinforcement and prestressed reinforcement used for nonlinear analysis are given. Through simulation analysis on simple beams subjected to single loading at the middle of the span, the law of factors influencing curvature ductility, such as global reinforcing index, prestressing degree, effective prestress, strength of concrete and grade of non-prestressed reinforcement are explored. Based on these researches, calculating formula of curvature ductility coefficient of UPC beams is established, which provides basic data for further research on plastic design of UPC indeterminate structures.

Experimental and theoretical analysis on the natural frequency of external prestressed concrete beams

Analyses and computations of the natural frequencies of external prestressed concrete structures are the bases for studying the dynamic properties of such structures. We carded out dynamic tests on three types of external simply supported beams, pulling the beams gradually. Then vertical loads were applied to the beams while the frequencies and related coefficients were measured at every step. We calculated natural frequencies and the results indicate that natural frequencies increase as the prestressing force rises in the pre-crack stage, and decrease significantly during the post-crack stage. Substantial incoincidences exist between the calculated and experimental results for the frequency and its tendency to changel Based on the experimental results, we modified the stiffness and other parameters in the equations. The results calculated using the modified equations agree with experimental results well, so the modified eauations can be used nractically.

METHOD FOR FAST TEST OF PRESTRESSED CONCRETE VOIDED SLAB (V.S)

By practical experience and lots of actuel data on tens of prestressed concrete V.S,maximum strains of the midspan sectional concrete and Strains of tendon are calculated according to actual date of the midspan deflection Yc, which show Whole structual working condition, as a result,method for fast test of structural bearing capacity can be deduced, which would make determining bearing capacity of existing prestressed concrete V.S simply and quickly, and also improve accuracy of cxperimental results and working efficiency.