Modelling lead-rubber seismic isolation bearings using the unified mechanics theory

Lead-rubber seismic isolation bearings (LRB) have been installed in a number of essential and critical structures, like hospitals, universities and bridges, in order to provide them with period lengthening and the capacity of dissipating a considerable amount of energy to mitigate the effects of strong ground motions. Therefore, studying the damage mechanics of this kind of devices is fundamental to understand and accurately describe their thermo-mechanical behavior, so that seismically isolated structures can be designed more safely. Hitherto, the hysteretic behavior of LRB has been modeled using 1) Newtonian mechanics and empirical curve fitting degradation functions, or 2) heat conduction theories and idealized bilinear curves which include degradation effects. The reason for using models that are essentially phenomenological or that contain some adjusted parameters is the fact that Newton’s universal laws of motion lack the term to account for degradation and energy loss of a system. In this paper, the Unified Mechanics Theory – which integrates laws of Thermodynamics and Newtonian mechanics – is used to model the force-displacement response of LRB. Indeed, there is no need for curve fitting techniques to describe their damage behavior because degradation is calculated at every point using entropy generation along the Thermodynamics State Index (TSI) axis. A finite element model of a lead-rubber bearing was constructed in ABAQUS, where a user material subroutine UMAT was implemented to define the Unified Mechanics Theory equations and the viscoplastic constitutive model for lead. Finite element analysis results were compared with experimental test data.

Effect of fiber ratio on the impact behavior of polypropylene fiber reinforced samples

This study investigated the effect of fiber ratio on the impact behavior of polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete cube and beam samples. Plain concrete mixtures for control samples and polypropylene fiber-reinforced concrete mixtures with fiber ratios of %0.22, %0.44, and %0.66 by volume were prepared. An instrumented drop-weight impact system was used for the dynamic tests. Static compression tests, three-point bending tests, and impact tests were performed on beam samples (with the dimension of 100×100×500 mm). Static compression and impact tests were performed on cube samples (with the size of 100 mm). It was observed that the fracture properties of polypropylene fiber reinforced concrete for both cube and beam samples were better than the control samples under impact. The crack width in the beams under the impact decreased with the increase in polypropylene fiber ratio. The cube and beam concrete samples reinforced with polypropylene fibers absorbed the impact energy better than the control samples.

Investigation bending behaviors of the slabs with glass fiber reinforced polymer composite and steel bars

Glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP) composites have been frequently used in engineering applications in recent years. GFRP composites produced by using glass fiber and epoxy resin have significant advantages such as high strength, lightness, and resistance against corrosion. However, GFRP composites exhibit a more brittle behavior than steel bars. This study aims to investigate both the experimental and numerical bending behavior of slabs with GFRP bars, steel bars, and polypropylene fiber. Within the scope of experimental studies, 5 slabs were built. Two slabs called SS-1 and SS-2 have only steel bars. Two slabs called GFRPS-1 and GFRPS-2 have only GFRP composite bars. A slab called GFRPS-F has both GFRP composite bars and polypropylene fibers. Polypropylene fibers are added to fresh concrete to improve the slab’s ductility. Three-point bending tests have been carried out on the slabs. All slabs are subjected to monotonic increasing distributed loading until collapse. As a result of tests, GFRPS slabs have carried %53 higher load than SS slabs. However, the SS slabs have exhibited a more ductile behavior compared to the GFRPS slabs. GFRPS slabs have more and larger crack width than other slabs. The addition of 5% polypropylene fiber by volume to concrete has a significant contributed to ductility and tensile behavior of slab. The average displacement value of GFRPS-F slab is 22.3% larger than GFRPS slab. GFRPS-F slab has better energy consumption capacity than other slabs. The energy consumption capacity of GFRPS-F slab is 1.34 and 1.38 times that of SS and GFRPS slabs, respectively. The number of cracks in GFRPS-F slab is fewer than GFRPS slabs. The fibers have contributed to the serviceability of the GFRPS slabs by limiting the displacement and the crack width. GFRPS-F exhibits elastoplastic behavior and almost returns to its first position when the loading is stopped. In addition, experimental results are verified with numerical results obtained by using Abaqus software. Finally, it is concluded that GFRP composite bars can be safely used in field concretes, concrete roads, prefabricated panel walls, and slabs.

Computational contact mechanics for a medium consisting of functionally graded material coating and orthotropic substrate

This paper presents a semi-analytical method to investigate the frictionless contact mechanics between a functionally graded material (FGM) coating and an orthotropic substrate when the system is indented by a rigid flat punch. From the bottom, the orthotropic substrate is completely bonded to the rigid foundation. The body force of the orthotropic substrate is ignored in the solution, while the body force of the FGM coating is considered. An exponential function is used to define the smooth variation of the shear modulus and density of the FGM coating, and the variation of Poisson’s ratio is assumed to be negligible. The partial differential equation system for the FGM coating and the orthotropic substrate is solved analytically through Fourier transformations. After applying boundary and interface continuity conditions to the mixed boundary value problem, the contact problem is reduced to a singular integral equation. The Gauss–Chebyshev integration method is then used to convert the singular integral equation into a system of linear equations, which are solved using an appropriate iterative algorithm to calculate the contact stress under the rigid flat punch. The parametric analyses presented here demonstrate the effects of normalized punch length, material inhomogeneity, dimensionless press force, and orthotropic material type on contact stresses at interfaces, critical load factor, and initial separation distance between FGM coating and orthotropic substrate. The developed solution procedures are verified through the comparisons made to the results available in the literature. The solution methodology and numerical results presented in this paper can provide some useful guidelines for improving the design of multibody indentation systems using FGMs and anisotropic materials.

Exact finite beam element for open thin walled doubly symmetric members under torsional and warping moments

Starting with total potential energy variational principle, the governing equilibrium coupled equations for the torsional-warping static analysis of open thin-walled beams under various torsional and warping moments are derived. The formulation captures shear deformation effects due to warping. The exact closed form solutions for torsional rotation and warping deformation functions are then developed for the coupled system of two equations. The exact solutions are subsequently used to develop a family of shape functions which exactly satisfy the homogeneous form of the governing coupled equations. A super-convergent finite beam element is then formulated based on the exact shape functions. Key features of the beam element developed include its ability to (a) eliminate spatial discretization arising in commonly used finite elements, and (e) eliminate the need for time discretization. The results based on the present finite element solution are found to be in excellent agreement with those based on exact solution and ABAQUS finite beam element solution at a small fraction of the computational and modelling cost involved.

Fuzzy logic aided PPF controller design to active vibration control of a flexible beam

This paper presents a fuzzy-logic-based observer and a positive position feedback controller to reduce a standard beam's free vibrations using a piezoelectric actuator. It is aimed that fuzzy-logic-based observer is used as feed-through and improves the overall performance of the PPF controller. For this aim, the cantilever beam and a piezoelectric patch are initially numerically modeled using the finite element method considering the close loop control algorithm. The displacement and strain responses results are compared with the experimental model. Then, two controllers are applied to the designed system: positive position feedback (PPF) and fuzzy-logic-based positive position feedback (FLBPPF). The uncontrolled and controlled system responses are investigated and compared in terms of the linear strain and tip displacement results. Using the FLBPPF controller, the settling times of controlled systems are decreased by about 20.7% and 41.6% regarding the linear strain and tip displacement response compared to the PPF controller.

Seismic performance evaluation of a precast concrete structure with deformation-based limit criterions

In precast reinforced concrete buildings, which constitute an important part of the industrial buildings in Turkey, the force flow between the structural elements is provided by beam-column connections with or without transferring moments. In general, moment resisting beam-column connections with mechanical or emulative components are applied at the mezzanine level. For precast concrete structures, strength-based design is the most common design approach in engineering practice. In recent years, performance based seismic design and evaluation approach also gained attention which provides numerical estimation of the damage in structural elements subjected to earthquake loading. This study presents the performance based seismic assessment of a two-story precast building based on the seismic evaluation requirements of Turkish Building Earthquake Code 2018. For this purpose, numerical simulation model has been established by using lumped plasticity models for connections and distributed plasticity models for columns. Strong ground motion records are scaled based on TBEC-2018 acceleration spectrum for a specific location, and nonlinear time history analyses are performed in x and y directions simultaneously. The performance evaluation results using average deformations show that there is a significant difference between plastic rotation and reinforcing bar strain performance limits.

Performance comparisons of triple friction pendulum bearings with different sliding surface properties

In this study the time history analyses are carried out three dimensionally for a simple five-story concrete structure seismically isolated incorporating triple friction pendulum bearings with different sliding surface properties with the help of the ABAQUS finite element program. The altering friction surface properties are friction coefficient and radius of curvature. The performances of the various isolators are compared with each other as well as with those of a fixed based structure. For this purpose, maximum relative story displacements, story accelerations and column base shear forces are investigated as seismic reactions. According to the analysis results it can be stated that the seismic reactions of isolated structures are significantly reduced when compared to those of the fixed supported structure. Additionally, when triple friction pendulum bearing isolators with different friction coefficients and friction surface radii are compared, it can be observed that increasing the friction coefficient increases the reactions of the structure while increasing the friction surface radii decreases the reactions

Experimental study on annular cylindrical tuned liquid dampers for vibration control under different excitation angles

This work aims to experimentally show the effectiveness of annular cylindrical tuned liquid dampers (ACTLDs) on the classical tuned liquid column dampers (TLCDs) under the effect of inclined ground motion. For experimental measurements, a single-story model structure constituted by two plates at the top and bottom connected by four columns was constructed. Since the water length within the tuned liquid dampers (TLDs) is a very important parameter that affects the performance of the absorber, ACTLD and TLCD devices were designed such that their total water lengths be equal for comparison purposes. The modal characteristics of the model structure were determined by ambient vibration tests. The resonant frequency, head-loss coefficient, damping ratio, and water height-frequency diagram of ACTLD and TLCD devices were obtained experimentally through the shaking table tests. Then, the shaking table tests on the model structure with and without the absorbers under consideration were performed to obtain the acceleration and displacement time-histories and the damping ratio for the coupled system. In experimental tests, different excitation directions from 0 to 90 deg were considered. Results of the study show that ACTLDs are better than TLCDs at suppressing vibrations caused by ground motions acting on the structure at oblique angles.

Seismic damage assessment of a historical masonry minaret considering soil-structure interaction

Historical structures should be carefully preserved and transferred to the next generations. Therefore, their seismic performances should be investigated in detail. In the finite element method, many parameters affect the seismic behaviour and damage distribution in the structures. One of the most significant parameters is the Soil-Structure Interaction effect. In finite element analyses, the soil medium is generally neglected, and the structures' base is restrained by fixed supports. In this study, seismic response of a historical masonry minaret is investigated by considering the Soil-Structure Interaction and Operational Modal Analysis methods. To determine the effect of Soil-Structure Interaction on structural behaviour, the fixed supports, hard and soft soil mediums at the base of the structure are modelled. The material and failure behaviours are defined with the Concrete Damage Plasticity model. Displacements, principal stresses, damage rates, and damage distribution of models are obtained with nonlinear time history analyses. According to the results, the interstory drift increases due to the decrease in the stiffness of the soil media. In addition, the fixed supports model was damaged more tensile stress damage than the other models. The least occurred in the soft soil model. It is concluded that the Soil-Structure Interaction effect significantly affects structural behaviour, especially the damage rate and distribution.