Defects in Concrete Elements: A Study of Residential Buildings of 30 Years and above in Onitsha Metropolis, Anambra State, Nigeria

Building defect is an issue in existing buildings that needs urgent tackling to prevent further problems. This study assessed the defects in concrete elements in residential buildings of 30 years and above in the Onitsha metropolis of Anambra State, Nigeria. Data collection instruments in the study include structured questionnaire, interviews, visual inspection/observations, archival records, recordings, photographs;and non-destructive testing of the concrete elements in an existing building in the study area. The population of this study constituted of the construction registered professionals and the existing buildings in study area. The sample for the study was based on the calculated sample size using Taro Yamani Formula. A total of 158 registered professionals were sampled from the population of 260. The questionnaires were purposively distributed to the registered professionals up to the required sample sizes of 158 and 129 questionnaires were properly filled and returned. The study used the SPSS and Microsoft Excel to analyze the data. The results were analyzed in percentages and figures using descriptive statistics and presented in the form of pie charts and tables. The finding of the study revealed that the causes and effects of structural defects on the concrete elements in existing buildings in the study area according to the rating are;exposed/corrosion of the embedded metals, faulty workmanship, overload and impacts, chemical attack, freeze-thaw deterioration, fire/heat, restraint to volume change. The visual observation revealed that the structural elements are characterized by heavy defects such as deep vertical, horizontal and diagonal cracks, exposed/ corrosion of the embedded metals, spalling of the concrete slabs. The existence of defects in the concrete members led to the low compressive strength of the concrete elements and the structural instability of the existing buildings as revealed by the non-destructive test. The non-destructive test result revealed that most of the tested concrete elements have low compressive strength value and such were remarked poor as they did not satisfy the assumed value. Essentially, the study concluded by recommending that regular monitoring, inspections and non-destructive testing of concrete elements should be conducted on existing aged and defected buildings to detect the structural stability of the buildings;and it is imperative to evacuate occupants from heavy structurally deteriorated and defected buildings since most of them have lost their residual design life span and ability to sustain imposed loads.

Cracking Propagation of Hardening Concrete Based on the Extended Finite Element Method

Self-deformation cracking is the cracking caused by thermal deformation, autogenous volume deformation or shrinkage deformation. In this paper, an extended finite element calculation method was deduced for concrete crack propagation under a constant hydration and hardening condition during the construction period, and a corresponding programming code was developed. The experimental investigation shows that initial crack propagation caused by self-deformation loads can be analyzed by this program. This improved algorithm was a preliminary application of the XFEM to the problem of the concrete self-deformation cracking during the hydration and hardening period. However, room for improvement exists for this algorithm in terms of matching calculation programs with mass concrete temperature fields containing cooling pipes and the influence of creep or damage on crack propagation.

Hydration Process and Crack Tendency of Concrete Based on Resistivity and Restrained Shrinkage Crack

Hydration process, crack potential and setting time of concrete grade C30, C40 and C50 were monitored by using a non-contact electrical resistivity apparatus, a novel plastic ring mould and penetration resistance methods, respectively. The results show the highest resistivity of C30 at the early stage until a point when C50 accelerated and overtook the others. It has been experimentally confirmed that the crossing point of C30 and C50 corresponds to the final setting time of C50. From resistivity derivative curve, four different stages were observed upon which the hydration process is classified; these are dissolution, induction, acceleration and deceleration periods. Consequently, restrained shrinkage crack and setting time results demonstrated that C50 set and cracked the earliest. The cracking time of all the samples occurred within a reasonable experimental period thus the novel plastic ring is a convenient method for predicting concrete＇s crack potential. The highest inflection time（t_i） obtained from resistivity curve and the final setting time（t_f） were used with crack time（t_c） in coming up with mathematical models for the prediction of concrete＇s cracking age for the range of concrete grade considered. Finally, an ANSYS numerical simulation supports the experimental findings in terms of the earliest crack age of C50 and the crack location.

Finite Element Method for Design of Reinforced Concrete Offshore Platforms

A design method of reinforced concrete (R. C.) offshore platforms with nonlinear finite element analysis is proposed. According to the method, a computer program is developed. In this program nonlinear constitutive relationships and strength criteria of concrete and steel bars are included, and the progressive cracking and crushing of the concrete are taken into account. Based on the stress distribution obtained by the nonlinear finite element analysis, the amount of reinforcement in the control sections can be computed and adjusted automatically by the program to satisfy the requirement of the design. The amount of reinforcement required in the control sections, which are obtained with the nonlinear finite element analysis, is agreeable to that obtained in the experiment. This shows that the design method of R. C. offshore platform with the nonlinear finite element method proposed by the authors is reliable for practical use.

Surface wave propagation effects on buried segmented pipelines

This paper deals with surface wave propagation （WP） effects on buried segmented pipelines. Both simplified analytical model and finite element （FE） model are developed for estimating the axial joint pullout movement of jointed concrete cylinder pipelines （JCCPs） of which the joints have a brittle tensile failure mode under the surface WP effects. The models account for the effects of peak ground velocity （PGV）, WP velocity, predominant period of seismic excitation, shear transfer between soil and pipelines, axial stiffness of pipelines, joint characteristics, and cracking strain of concrete mortar. FE simulation of the JCCP interaction with surface waves recorded during the 1985 Michoacan earthquake results in joint pullout movement, which is consistent with the field observations. The models are expanded to estimate the joint axial pullout movement of cast iron （CI） pipelines of which the joints have a ductile tensile failure mode. Simplified analytical equation and FE model are developed for estimating the joint pullout movement of CI pipelines. The joint pullout movement of the CI pipelines is mainly affected by the variability of the joint tensile capacity and accumulates at local weak joints in the pipeline.