• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.81-88
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• 2021

Structural health monitoring (SHM) systems have attracted considerable interest owing to the frequent earthquakes over the last decade. Smart concrete is a technology that can analyze the state of structures based on their electro-mechanical behavior. On the other hand, most research on the self-sensing response of smart concrete generally investigated the electro-mechanical behavior of smart concrete under a static loading rate, even though the loading rate under an earthquake would be much faster than the static rate. Thus, this study evaluated the electro-mechanical behavior of smart ultra-high-performance concrete (S-UHPC) at three different loading rates (1, 4, and 8 mm/min) using a Universal Testing Machine (UTM). The stress-sensitive coefficient (SC) at the maximum compressive strength of S-UHPC was -0.140 %/MPa based on a loading rate of 1 mm/min but decreased by 42.8% and 72.7% as the loading rate was increased to 4 and 8 mm/min, respectively. Although the sensing capability of S-UHPC decreased with increased load speed due to the reduced deformation of conductive materials and increased microcrack, it was available for SHM systems for earthquake detection in structures.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.9 no.5
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• pp.459-467
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• 2020

Mechanical and thermal properties of composite sandwich wall panels are affected by changes in their external environment. Humidity and temperature changes induce stress on wall panels and their core connectors. Under the action of ambient temperature, temperature on the outer layer of the wall panel changes greatly, while that on the inner layer only changes slightly. As a result, stress concentration exists at the intersection of the connector and the wall blade. In this paper, temperature field and stress field distribution of UHPC-RW-RC (Ultra-High Performance Concrete - Rock Wool - Reinforced Concrete) wall panel under high temperature-sprinkling and heating-freezing conditions were investigated by using the general finite element software ABAQUS. Additionally, design of the connection between the wall panel and the main structure is proposed. Findings may serve as a scientific reference for design of high performance composite sandwich wall panels.

• Journal of the Korea institute for structural maintenance and inspection
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.57-65
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• 2022

This study investigated the electromechanical response of smart ultra-high performance fiber reinforced concretes (S-UHPFRCs) under flexural loading to evaluate the self-sensing capacity of S-UHPFRCs in both tension and compression region. The electrical resistivity of S-UHPFRCs under flexural continuously changed even after first cracking due to the deflection-hardening behavior of S-UHPFRCs with the appearance of multiple microcracks. As the equivalent bending stress increased, the electrical resistivity of S-UHPFRCs decreased from 976.57 to 514.05 kΩ(47.0%) as the equivalent bending stress increased in compression region, and that did from 979.61 to 682.28 kΩ(30.4%) in tension region. The stress sensitivity coefficient of S-UHPFRCs in compression and tension region was 1.709 and 1.098 %/MPa, respectively. And, the deflection sensitivity coefficient of S-UHPFRCs in compression region(30.06 %/mm) was higher than that in tension region(19.72 %/mm). The initial deflection sensing capacity of S-UHPFRCs was almost 50% of each deflection sensitivity coefficient, and it was confirmed that it has an excellent sensing capacity for the initial deflection. Although both stress- and deflection-sensing capacity of S-UHPFRCs under flexural were higher in compression region than in tension region, S-UHPFRCs are sufficient as a self-sensing material to be applied to the construction field.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.605-617
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• 2020

In this study, the experimental tests for the direct tensile strength measurement of Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC) were numerically modeled by using the discrete element method (circle type element) and Finite Element Method (FEM). The experimental tests used for the laboratory tensile strength measurement is the Compressive-to-Tensile Load Conversion (CTLC) device. In this paper, the failure process including the cracks initiation, propagation and coalescence studied and then the direct tensile strength of the UHPC specimens measured by the novel apparatus i.e., CTLC device. For this purpose, the UHPC member (each containing a central hole) prepared, and situated in the CTLC device which in turn placed in the universal testing machine. The direct tensile strength of the member is measured due to the direct tensile stress which is applied to this specimen by the CTLC device. This novel device transferring the applied compressive load to that of the tensile during the testing process. The UHPC beam specimen of size 150 × 60 × 190 mm and internal hole of 75 × 60 mm was used in this study. The rate of the applied compressive load to CTLC device through the universal testing machine was 0.02 MPa/s. The direct tensile strength of UHPC was found using a new formula based on the present analyses. The numerical simulation given in this study gives the tensile strength and failure behavior of the UHPC very close to those obtained experimentally by the CTLC device implemented in the universal testing machine. The percent variation between experimental results and numerical results was found as nearly 2%. PFC2D simulations of the direct tensile strength measuring specimen and ABAQUS simulation of the tested CTLC specimens both demonstrate the validity and capability of the proposed testing procedure for the direct tensile strength measurement of UHPC specimens.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.44 no.3
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• pp.407-421
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• 2022

Prefabricated hybrid wind turbine towers (WTTs) are promising due to height increase. This study proposes the use of ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) to develop a new type of WTT without the need to use reinforcement. It is demonstrated that the UHPC WTT structure without reinforcing bars could achieve performance similar to that of reinforced concrete WTTs. To simplify the design of WTT, a design approach for the calculation of stresses at the horizontal joints of a WTT is proposed. The stress distribution near the region of the horizontal joint of the WTT structure under normal operating conditions and different load actions is studied using the proposed approach, which is validated by the finite element method. A further parametric study shows that the degree of prestressing and the bending moment both significantly affect the principal stress. The shear-to-torsion ratio also shows a significant influence on the principal tensile stress.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.147-156
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• 2020

This numerical study demonstrates the porosity conditions and the intensity of the interactions with the aggressive agents. It is established that the density as well as the elastic modulus are correlated to ultrasonic velocity The following investigation assessed the effects of cement grade and porosity on tensile strength, flexural and compressive of Ultra High Performance Concrete (UHPC) as a numerical model in PLAXIS 2d Software. Initially, the existing strength-porosity equations were investigated. Furthermore, comparisons of the proposed equations with the existing models suggested the high accuracy of the proposed equations in predicting, cement grade concrete strength. The outcome obtained showed a ductile failure when un-corroded reinforced concrete demonstrates several bending-induced cracks transfer to the steel reinforcement. Moreover, the outcome also showed a brittle failure when wider but fewer transverse cracks occurred under bending loads. Sustained loading as well as initial pre-cracked condition during the corrosion development have shown to have significant impact on the corrosion behavior of concrete properties. Moreover, greater porosity was generally associated with lower compressive, flexural, and tensile strength. Higher cement grade, on the other hand, resulted in lower reduction in concrete strength. This finding highlighted the critical role of cement strength grade in determining the mechanical properties of concrete.