Role of Laws to Control Brick Manufacturing and Kiln Establishment in Bangladesh: Scope of Alternative Bricks

In Bangladesh, clay bricks are extensively used as building construction material. Rapid urbanization in the country has spurred the brick production of 8.6 billion each year. Larger part of brick fields have been set up illicitly, near human homes, schools, colleges, medicinal services offices, disregarding the current laws in this regard. Top soil of agricultural land is collected for producing bricks. As a result our country is losing hectares of precious topsoil each year. In Bangladesh, around 12,000 brick kilns are in operation. A kiln produces averagely 8,500 bricks using 1,000 cubic feet of topsoil. Tons of forest wood is burned to produce bricks every year. Brick kilns emissions consist of carbon-dioxide (CO2), particulate matter (PM) including black carbon (BC), sulphur-dioxide (SO2), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), and carbon monoxide (CO), thereby causing air pollution. Brick kilns around Dhaka are responsible for up to 58 percent of all the fine-particulate air pollution in the capital. Unabated growth and running of brick kilns reveals the fact that the law enforcement mechanism is not functioning properly. Housing and Building Research Institute (HBRI), has come up with various alternatives of bricks, rarely used in any private or public buildings. This study concentrates on the roles of existing laws to control brick manufacturing and kiln establishment in Bangladesh and also scope of Alternative Bricks (ABs) in Bangladesh.

The Effect of Type and Height of Piers on the Seismic Behavior of Reinforced Concrete Bridges

Bridges are commonly used lifelines; they play an important role in the economic activity of a city or a region and their role can be crucial in a case of a seismic event since they allow the arrival of the first aid. Reinforced concrete (RC) bridges are worldwide used type view their durability, flexibility and economical cost. In fact, their behavior under seismic loading was the aim of various studies. In the present study the effect of two structural parameters i.e. the height and the type of piers of reinforced concrete bridges on seismic response is investigated. For that reason, different multi-span continuous girder bridges models with various geometrical parameters are considered. Then, non-linear dynamic analyses are performed based on two types of piers which are: multiple columns bent and wall piers with varying heights. In this approach, a serie of 40 ground motions records varying from weak to strong events selected from Building Research Institute (BRI) strong motion database are used including uncertainty in the soil and seismic characteristics. Modelling results put most emphasis on the modal periods and responses of the top pier displacements, they show the influence of the considered parameters on the behavior of such structures and their impact on the strength of reinforced concrete bridges.

Non-Model Approach Based Damage Detection in RC Frame with Masonry Infill

The paper focuses on real-time damage detection based on vibration studies carried out by the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) structural health monitoring team. The experiment was performed on a 1:3 scaled model of a six- story reinforced concrete (RC) frame with masonry infill in the building dynamics laboratory of CBRI. The forward problem is attended by inducing step-by-step damage in infill to investigate the changes in dynamic response as a result of changes in the physical properties of the structure. Recorded time histories are processed for frequency response spectra (FRS) with fast fourier transform (FFT) and mode shapes are obtained. Changes in natural frequency and modal curvature for each of the five damage cases are analysed for damage detection and location in the structure. An algorithm for damage identification viz. curvature damage factor (CDF) approach is presented.

Residual seismic capacity of ductile RC frame with wing walls based on full-scale loading test

In order to use a damaged building continuously after earthquake, owners and/or stakeholders need to understand residual seismic capacity of the building. In Japan, a method to evaluate residual seismic capacity for damaged buildings had been developed. In order to evaluate residual seismic capacity of damaged building, the damage level of structural elements should be evaluated properly. This paper presents the results of damage analysis based on experimental data obtained from a full-scale static loading test [1] on a five-story reinforced concrete building tested at Building Research Institute. The damage rating for the specimens evaluated by the residual seismic capacity concept [3] was ”Moderate” or ”Heavy” at 0.5% and 1% building drift angle despite the structure maintaining horizontal load carrying capacity. This implies that the applied method gives a conservative result for ductile buildings, such as relatively new moment resisting frames designed after 1981. In order to apply the method used in this paper to new buildings, the damage evaluation method for structural elements should be advanced more in the future.

Strategy of Research Institutes in Construction in Shaping the Research Area

The model concept, as presented in this paper, is an original solution created by the author, and can be used as a proposal to build an innovative mechanism to increase the effectiveness of programming and implementation of the development policy, and improve the quality of functioning of a building research institute. The development management system included in this model is a set of actions targeting at the effective use of human and tangible resources, undertaken in a coordinated manner and leading to the achievement of previously established objectives. The market activity of building research institutes is directly or indirectly involved in construction projects, which translates into market mechanisms, such as innovation and competitiveness. In addition, it indicates the participation of a building research institute in the engineering of construction projects as a key to entrepreneurship and implementations.

Environmental qualities and patient well-being in hospital settings

Within the last decades the impacts of the physical environments of hospitals on healing and health-care outcomes have been subject to ample research. The amount of documentation linking the design of physical environments to patient and staff outcomes is increasing. A Danish research project undertaken by Architecture and Design and the Danish Building Research Institute (Aalborg University) set out in 2008 to review research on the impact of the environmental qualities of health-care facilities on patients and staff. The objective of the review team was to develop a tool that would allow an overview of this research, needed by construction clients and decision-makers in Denmark responsible for large investments in future hospitals and healthcare environments in the decade to come. The present paper offers an overview of the findings of the review team. Its point of departure is the categorisation developed during the study, which facilitated the sorting and communication of the findings. In this categorisation, research findings are grouped according to their focus on specific spatial qualities – such as light and acoustics – and not according to the different diagnoses, which may be linked to such spatial qualities, like stress and depression. In other words, the application of this categorisation foregrounds the importance and the convenience of looking at spatial qualities of the physical environment, when addressing issues related to patient or staff wellbeing.

Impact Sound Insulation Concept for Lightweight Timber Floor

This paper is the second continuation of lightweight timber frame floor construction investigation with a respect to impact noise isolation. We will log on to previous article which dealt with mockup investigation of new LWTF floor conception. The main objectives of research is to design lightweight floor with good impact sound insulation performance to achieve low cost and reduce thickness of construction. In the following chapters well outline results of new floor model on lightweight timber frame construction implemented in laboratory conditions in Belgian Building Research Institute in Limelette, Belgium.

The structural fire design of concrete structures with externally bonded reinforcement and fire protection system

This work describes the structural fire design process of RC structures with externally bonded reinforcement. First part is based on the calculation method given in EN 1992-1-2 and addresses the question whether the fire protection of externally bonded reinforcement is necessary in every situation? The second part shows what such fire protection should look like and how it should be designed. Moreover, a test procedure for determining the effectiveness of applied fire protection systems to concrete structural members reinforced with FRP, used in Fire Testing Laboratory of Building Research Institute (ITB) is presented.

Influence of Mineral Admixtures on early Shrinkage of Ordinary Concrete

In this paper the influence of mineral admixtures on early shrinkage of ordinary concrete with the same water-binder ratio is studied by self-made equipment and CABR-NES deformation instrument developed by China Academy of Building Research Institute. All concrete specimens are cured with one surface exposed to air and others are covered with plastic film. The replacement ratio of mineral admixtures is 10%, 20% and 30%, respectively, and a mixture of a combination of both fly ash and slag is also studied. The results indicate fly ash reducing the early shrinkage of ordinary concrete, and the shrinkage decreases with the increasing of replacement ratio, but the effect is not so significant when the replacement ratio is above 20%. Slag also reduces the early shrinkage of ordinary concrete, and the shrinkage decreases with the increasing of replacement ratio, but the effect is not so significant when the replacement ratio is below 20%. Mixture with a combination of both fly ash and slag has lower shrinkage than mixture with fly ash.

Small Problem, Big Crisis: A Study on the Importance of Fire Separation in Tall Buildings

Risk is a concept that denotes the probability of the occurrence of dangers. The factors that generate fires and dangers are numerous, and always emerge in unapparent places. Once these factors are identified, a fire accident would happen and lead to great loss. For the fires happening in tall buildings that caused immense loss, the function of planned fire separation system was destroyed because the users had weak fire prevention concepts. One of the typical examples is the fire that happened and spread over Don-ke Building in Sijhih City, Taipei County, Taiwan. Based on the damage prevention concepts of property insurance agents, the study focused on the importance of the fire prevention management in tall buildings. The other part that was paid attention to is the Fire Safety Building strongly encouraged and propelled by the Architecture and Building Research Institute of Ministry of the Interior, with which the study conducted an investigation on fire risk management.