An Rapid Assessment Method for Bearing Capacity of RC Girder Bridges Based on Residual Strain

In order to realize the in-situ evaluation of reinforced concrete bridges subjected to fatigue for a long time or after earthquake, an evaluation method for cumulative damage of concrete structures based on unloading elastic modulus was proposed. First, according to the concrete stress-strain curve and the statistical relationship between residual strain and cumulative strain, the calculation method of static equivalent strain and residual strain concrete based on unloading elastic modulus and the method for estimating the strength of concrete after damage were proposed. The detailed steps of field test and analysis and the practical damage indicators of residual strain were given. Then, the evaluation method of existing stress and strain of Reinforced Concrete Bridge under dead load and the concept of “equivalent dead load bending moment” were put forward. On this basis, the paper analyzed the root cause of the decrease of bearing capacity of Reinforced Concrete Bridge after fatigue damage, and pointed out that the equivalent strain or residual strain of reinforced concrete increases under the fatigue effect, which led to the decreasing of actual live moment and deformation performance while the ultimate load-carrying capacity remained constant or very little decrease. The evaluation method of structure residual capacity was given, and through comparative analysis of eight T reinforced concrete beams that had been in service for 35 years with the static failure tests, the effectiveness of the method was verified.

Experimental Investigation on Low-Velocity Impact Response and Residual Compressive Bearing Capacity of Composite Stringers

Three types of composite stringers were impacted from two different directions.Relationships between impact energy and visible defect length were found.The critical impact energy corresponding to barely visible impact damage(BVID)of each stringer was determined.Specimens with BVID were then compressed to obtain the residual strength.Experimental results showed that for all types of stringers,the critical energy of in-plane impact is always much lower than out-plane ones.In-plane impact causes much more decrement of stringers'bearing capacity than outplane impact.For both impact directions,I-stringers own the highest defect detectability,T-stringers come second.Meanwhile,I-stringers own the better residual strength ratio than I-stringers and I-stringers.Synthetic considering impact defect detectability and residual bearing capacity after impact,T-stringers own the best compression-afterimpact(CAI)behaviors.

Test and damage assessment of shallow buried RC tunnel under explosion

As a major element of the transportation network,tunnels are unavoidably threatened by accidental loads such as vehicle bombs and tank truck explosions.The goal of this research is to explore the dynamic characteristics and damage assessment of tunnel structures under contact blast loads.First,three scaled-down reinforced concrete tunnel models were made,and the explosion test and static loading test were carried out successively to evaluate the axial residual bearing capacity,axial displacement and failure mechanism of the tunnel.Secondly,the finite element model is built by utilizing LS-DYNA,and the reliability of the finite element method is confirmed by comparing the data of the explosion test with the static loading test.At the same time,the calculation method for damage coefficient and the classification criteria for damage grade based on axial residual bearing capacity are presented.Then,based on the finite element method,the propagation process of the explosion shock wave in the tunnel and the damage mechanism of the tunnel are investigated.Finally,seven explosion scenarios are developed,the damage degree of these seven tunnels under the blast load is quantitatively analyzed,and further anti-blast design ideas are put forth.The study in this article may give an intended reference for the damage assessment,anti-explosion design and strengthening work of reinforced concrete tunnels.