Analysis of High Strength Concrete processed from Recycled Concrete Aggregates

As everyone is aware of the fact that Natural Coarse Aggregate (NCA) is the main constituent of traditional concrete mixes. Whenever an existing concrete structure is demolished, it produces smashed concrete waste in the large amount. Concrete waste give rise to negative effects on the environment. To evade the environmental pollution and mark effective reuse of the concrete waste as Recycled Aggregates in the place of NCA. This operative initiative provides an opportunity to reduce air pollution and soil exploitation to some extent. Such concrete is sustainable in nature and also eco-friendly to the environment. Also, such waste material will lower the usage of naturally occurring stone to produce NCA and thus various natural energy resources will be safeguarded. This study covers the suitability norms for a material to be used for Recycled Aggregate. In this study the natural aggregate is replaced with recycled aggregate in the different percentages (0%, 25%, 50%). When percentage of recycled aggregate mixed in the fixed proportion as percentage replacement to natural aggregates, it imparts improvement in the property of fresh as well as hardened concrete like, compressive strength & split tensile strength. Laboratory results of this research indicates that the value of compressive strength, tensile strength stress-strain curve & NDT of these mixes drives on decreasing, but at the 25% replacement level, it achieves target mean strength. Hence, for the fundamental concrete mix Natural Coarse Aggregate can be efficiently replaced by the Recycled Aggregate to the range of 25%. Keywords: Concrete, Recycled aggregate, Natural Coarse Aggregate (NCA), Compressive Strength, Tensile strength, , NDT, Stress-Strain Curve

Scaling of RC Chimney for the Experimental Investigation under Lateral Load

Reinforced concrete chimneys are tall industrial structures specially used in power plants to expel waste gases at high enough elevation. Based on the study of various literature available for the subject, various geometrical, material, and loading parameters to be followed to prepare the test specimens are presented in this paper so that the test specimen represents the behaviour of the actual RC chimney. The special construction process required to be followed is described in this paper along with the various analytical checks to be performed before the actual application of lateral loads on test specimens. Different design standards give different design recommendations mainly in terms of the stress-strain curve of concrete and steel. So, various experimental tests performed by applying the lateral load on specially designed and casted test specimens which represents the actual chimney in the field helps the researchers to compare the various design standards and helps the industry to opt for the same.

Study on the Physical Properties and Joint Evolution Characteristics of Three-Dimensional Reconstructed Coal

There are various complex joints (fissures), laminae, and other soft structural surfaces in the roadway enclosure, and the existence of these soft structural surfaces seriously affects the stability of the roadway enclosure. In order to study the mechanical properties of the coal body and the development of joints during coal fracture, this paper establishes a three-dimensional model of the fracture structure of the coal body based on CT scanning and three-dimensional reconstruction technology. On this basis, a 3D numerical model of the equivalent nodal coal body is constructed, uniaxial compression simulation analysis is performed, and the joint evolution development law of the coal sample is studied by the built-in joint monitoring program of PFC3D. The results show that the larger the effective joint area and larger the joint size inside the coal sample, the smaller the compressive strength of the coal sample. The increase of joint size and joint surface area increased the ductility and stress-strain curve multipeak phenomenon of the coal sample to some extent. During the rupture of the coal sample, the changes of each phase of the statistical curve of joint number and the phases of the stress-strain curve of the coal sample are compatible.

Crack-Bridging Property Evaluation of Synthetic Polymerized Rubber Gel (SPRG) through Yield Stress Parameter Identification

Yield stress parameter derivation was conducted by stress-strain curve analysis on four types of grout injection leakage repair materials (GILRM); acrylic, epoxy, urethane and SPRG grouts. Comparative stress-strain curve analysis results showed that while the yield stress point was clearly distinguishable, the strain ratio of SPRG reached up to 664% (13 mm) before material cohesive failure. A secondary experimental result comprised of three different common component ratios of SPRG was conducted to derive and propose an averaged yield stress curve graph, and the results of the yield stress point (180% strain ratio) were set as the basis for repeated stress-strain curve analysis of SPRGs of up to 15 mm displacement conditions. Results showed that SPRG yield stress point remained constant despite repeated cohesive failure, and the modulus of toughness was calculated to be on average 53.1, 180.7, and 271.4 N/mm2, respectively, for the SPRG types. The experimental results of this study demonstrated that it is possible to determine the property limits of conventional GILRM (acrylic, epoxy and urethane grout injection materials) based on yield stress. The study concludes with a proposal on potential application of GILRM toughness by finite element analysis method whereby strain of the material can be derived by hydrostatic pressure. Comparative analysis showed that the toughness of SPRG materials tested in this study are all able to withstand hydrostatic pressure range common to underground structures (0.2 N/mm2). It is expected that the evaluation method and model proposed in this study will be beneficial in assessing other GILRM materials based on their toughness values.

Behavior and modeling of post-heated circular concrete specimens repaired with fiber-reinforced polymer composites

Exposure of buildings to fire is one of the unexpected events during the life of the structure. The heat from the fire can reduce the strength of structural members, and these damaged members need to be strengthened. Repair and strengthening of concrete members by fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) composites has been one of the most popular methods in recent years and can be used in fire-damaged concrete members. In this paper, in order to provide further data and information about the behavior of post-heated circular concrete columns confined with FRP composites, 30 cylindrical concrete specimens were prepared and subjected under four exposure temperatures of 300, 500, 700, and 900. Then, specimens were repaired by carbon fiber reinforced polymer composites and tested under axial compression. Results indicate that heating causes the color change, cracks, and weight loss of concrete. Also, with the increase of heating temperature, the shape of stress–strain curve of FRP-retrofitted specimens will change. Therefore, the main parts of the stress–strain curve such as ultimate stress and strain and the elastic modulus will change. Thus, a new stress–strain model is proposed for post-heated circular concrete columns confined by FRP composites. Results indicate that the proposed model is in a good agreement with the experimental data.

Study on Damage Statistical Constitutive Model of Triaxial Compression of Acid-Etched Rock under Coupling Effect of Temperature and Confining Pressure

Based on Lemaitre’s strain equivalence hypothesis theory, it is assumed that the strength of acid-etching rock microelements under the coupling effect of temperature and confining pressure follows the Weibull distribution. Under the hypothesis that micro-element damage meets the D-P criterion and based on continuum damage mechanics and statistical theory, chemical damage variables, thermal damage variables and mechanical damage variables were introduced in the construction of damage evolution equations and constitutive models for acid-etching rocks considering the coupled effects of temperature and confining pressure. The required model parameters were obtained by theoretical derivation, and the model was verified based on the triaxial compression test data of granite. Comparing the experimental stress-strain curve with the theoretical stress-strain curve, the results show that they were in good agreement. By selecting reasonable model parameters, the damage statistical constitutive model can accurately reflect the stress-strain curve characteristics of rock in the process of triaxial compression. The comparison between the experimental and theoretical results also verifies the reasonableness and reliability of the model. This model provides a new rock damage statistical constitutive equation for the study of rock mechanics and its application in engineering, and has certain reference significance for rock underground engineering.