Life-Cycle Bearing Capacity for Pre-Stressed T-beams Based on Full-Scale Destructive Test

To investigate the evolution of load-bearing characteristics of pre-stressed beams throughout their service life and to provide a basis for accurately assessing the actual working state of damaged pre-stressed concrete T-beams,destructive tests were conducted on full-scale pre-stressed concrete beams.Based on the measurement and ana-lysis of beam deflection,strain,and crack development under various loading levels during the research tests,combined with the verification coefficient indicators specified in the codes,the verification coefficients of bridges at different stages of damage can be examined.The results indicate that the T-beams experience complete,incom-plete linear,and non-linear stages during the destructive test process.In the complete linear elastic stage,both the deflection and bottom strain verification coefficients comply with the specifications,indicating a good structural load-bearing capacity no longer adheres to the code’s requirements.In the non-linear stage,both coefficients exhi-bit a sharp increase,resulting in a further decrease in the structure’s load-bearing capacity.According to the pro-visions of the current code,the beam can be in the incomplete linear stage when both values fall within the code’s specified range.The strain verification coefficient sourced from the compression zone at the bottom of theflange is not recommended for assessing the bridge’s load-bearing capacity.

Multiple Objective Test Design for Accelerated Destructive Degradation Tests

Accelerated destructive degradation tests(ADDTs)are powerful to provide reliability information in the degradation processes with destructive measurements.In order to carry out an ADDT efficiently,both the estimation precision of parameters and the test cost should be considered.On the basis of the given degradation model and failure criterion,a multiple-objective optimization model for the design of ADDTs is proposed.Under constrains of the maximum measurement time,the total sample size and the number of stress levels,a comprehensive target function is suggested to reflect both the precision of lifetime estimation and total cost,and the optimal test plan is obtained,which is composed by optimal choices for samples size,measurement frequency,and the number of measurements at each stress level.A real example is illustrated to demonstrate the implementation of the proposed approach.

Non-destructive Evaluation of Absolute Stress in Steel Members Using Shear-Wave Spectroscopy

Non-destructive measurement of absolute stress in steel members can provide useful information to optimize the design of steel structures and allow the safety of existing structures to be evaluated.This paper investigates the non-destructive capability of ultrasonic shear-wave spectroscopy in absolute stress evaluation of steel members.The effect of steel-member stress on the shear-wave amplitude spectrum is investigated,and a method of absolute stress measurement is proposed.Specifically,the process for evaluating absolute stress using shear-wave spectroscopy is summarized.Two steel members are employed to investigate the relationship between the stress and the frequency in shear-wave echo amplitude spectrum.The H-beam loaded by the universal testing machine is evaluated by the proposed method and the traditional strain gauge method for verification.The results show that the proposed method is effective and accurate for determining absolute stress in steel members.

Artificial Neural Network(ANN)Approach for Predicting Concrete Compressive Strength by SonReb

The compressive strength of concrete is one of most important mechanical parameters in the performance assessment of existing reinforced concrete structures.According to various international codes,core samples are drilled and tested to obtain the concrete compressive strengths.Non-destructive testing is an important alternative when destructive testing is not feasible without damaging the structure.The commonly used non-destructive testing(NDT)methods to estimate the in-situ values include the Rebound hammer test and the Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity test.The poor reliability of these tests due to different aspects could be partially contrasted by using both methods together,as proposed.in the SonReb method.There are three techniques that are commonly used to predict the compressive strength of concrete based on the SonReb measurements:computational modeling,artificial intelligence,and parametric multi-variable regression models.In a previous study the accuracy of the correlation formulas deduced from the last technique has been investigated in comparison with the effective compressive strengths based on destructive test results on core drilled in adjacent locations.The aim of this study is to verify the accuracy of Artificial Neural Approach comparing the estimated compressive strengths based on NDT measured parameters with the same effective compressive strengths.The comparisons show the best performance of ANN approach.

Complete load transfer behavior of base-grouted bored piles

A field study on the behavior of three destructive piles in soft soils subjected to axial load was presented.All the three piles with different diameters were base-grouted and installed with strain gauges along the piles.The complete load transfer behavior of the base-grouted pile was analyzed using measured results.Moreover,the thresholds of the relative pile-soil displacement for fully mobilizing skin frictions in different soils were investigated,and pile tip displacements needed to fully mobilize tip resistances were analyzed.The results of the full-scale loading tests show that the skin frictions are close to the ultimate values when the pile-soil relative displacements are 1%-3% of pile diameter,and the pile tip displacements needed to fully mobilize the tip resistances are about 1.3%-2.0% of pile diameter.The load transmission curve of the soils around the pile tip corresponds to a softening model when the pile is loaded to failure.

Research of Large Field of View Scan Mode for Industrial CT

For industrial computed tomography systems, generation II scan mode has a large field of view but time consuming and generation III has a small field of view but fast. In order to realize the rapid ICT test of large objects, a scan mode based on generation III called large field of view scan was discussed and its reconstruction algorithm based on FBP was deduced. The validity of the algorithm was verified by the results of computer simulation and experiments. Analysis showed that the effective scan field of view could be improved by more than 90% compared with that of generation III.

A Pull-Out Test Study on the Working State of Fully Grouted Bolts

The present study examines the working conditions of fully grouted bolts used for the construction and expansion of high slopes.On the basis of a pull out destructive test,the work load and the ultimate load are obtained on site,and the Flac3d numerical simulation method is employed to determine the axial force distribution and the effective anchor length.The test results show that(1)the Q-S(load-displacement)curve of the bolt displays a certain degree of deformation coupled with the creep of the surrounding rock;(2)the working load of the bolt is closely related to the sliding deformation trend of the slope,while the ultimate load depends on the design parameters of the bolt and the lithology of the slope;(3)the distribution of bolt axial force is characterized by a single peak along the bolt length and the effective anchorage length of the bolt is 3 m;(4)after 20 years,the bolt’s ultimate load has a maximum loss of 31.94%.

Should we consider a new approach? Detecting grain deviation caused by knots within stems

This article describes the importance of detecting grain deviation caused by knots and reviews the main methods used in measuring grain orientation surrounding knots. It discusses the potential of using Diffusion Tensor Magnetic Resonance Imaging to track and map the grain deviation caused by knots.

A destructive field study on the behavior of piles under tension and compression

This paper involves a series of destructive full-scale load tests on long bored piles instrumented with strain gauges along the shafts,including two compression and two tension loading tests.The load-displacement response,axial force,skin friction,and the thresholds of the slip displacement for fully mobilizing the skin resistances in different soils are discussed.Moreover,the theoretical solution for estimating the pile tip settlement under compression was adopted to analyze the test results.It was found that the measured skin frictions for the piles under compression were about 6% to 42% higher than the estimated values of the cone penetration tests(CPTs),whereas the measured skin frictions in the uplift cases were about 16% to 50% smaller than the estimated values.In addition,the average limited skin frictions for the tension piles were about 0.36 to 0.78 times the average ultimate skin frictions for the piles under compression.It also can be indicated that the skin friction along the pile depth approached the limited state,and decreased from a peak value with increasing loads.

Recent progress of residual stress measurement methods: A review

Residual stress is one of the main factors affecting the mechanical properties of materials, such as their strength, plasticity and surface integrity. For instance, tensile stress conditions can adversely affect material performance or component life, while compressive stress conditions can improve material fatigue strength. During the processing of integrated aviation structures, machining deformation caused by residual stress has become one of the most prominent manufacturing problems. Therefore, it is very important to measure and evaluate the stress for real applications.This paper reviews the research of residual stress measurement methods over the past five years by classifying them according to the measurement methods appearing in each stage. The existing problems and difficulties of each measurement technology are summarized, and future trends are forecasted. This paper provides a reference for further in-depth study of residual stress measurement technologies.

Experimental Set-up of Laser Ultrasonic Techniques and Applications

A laser ultrasonics generation and non contact detection system has been developed. The weak generated ultrasonic signal of nanosecond duration and nanometer amplitude can be detected with a confocal Fabry Perot interferometer (CFPI). It can be applied to determination of elastic constants of material and flaw detection. The experimental results show that laser ultrasonic technique is practical and effective.