This issue of Structures and Buildings offers six papers covering experimental studies, advanced numerical simulations and analytical studies of different types of structures. These studies range from a shaking table analysis of the in-plane stiffness of precast slabs, a laboratory simulation of lateral swelling pressure acting on retaining walls and an experimental investigation of the size effect of high-strength fibre-reinforced concrete, to a numerical analysis of bridge piers subjected to vehicle explosion, the development of shell elements for modelling thin-walled open sections and, finally, the development of a new stress-strain model for reinforced concrete columns confined with FRP ties. New insights are offered into advanced structural analysis and design.
In the first paper by Zheng et al. (2022), the seismic performance of steel moment resisting frames coupled with precast concrete slabs was examined by way of shaking table analysis. Particular attention was focused on the in-plane stiffness and integrity of the stitch joints between precast slabs and beam-slab joints under seismic loads. The post-cast joints were found to perform very well without slip or damage. The in-plane stiffness of precast slabs was only slightly less than that of the cast in-situ slabs, which allows the diaphragm action for effective distribution of in-plane loads. This study can contribute to the seismic design of both precast and modular constructed composite buildings.
In the second paper by Al-Juari et al. (2022), the lateral swelling pressure acting on retaining walls due to expansive soil was investigated through experimental and numerical study. The effects not only of saturation on the distribution of lateral swelling pressure with soil depth and the vertical displacement of soil, but also of applied vertical stress on lateral stress and the settlement of backfill soil were studied. This study can supplement conventional retaining wall design by incorporating lateral swelling pressure into the lateral earth pressure calculation.
The third paper by Khalilpour and Dehestani (2022) quantified the size and shape effects of steel fibre-reinforced high-strength concrete. Steel fibres were added to mitigate the brittleness and size effect of high-strength concrete, which consisted of various contents of silica fume. Concrete cube and cylinder specimens of different sizes together with notched beams were cast and tested to study the size and shape effects. The size and shape effect laws obtained from this study can allow a more accurate evaluation of concrete strength from standard material testing for structural design.
The fourth paper Zhu et al. (2022) presents a numerical analysis of reinforced concrete piers subjected to vehicle explosion. Autodyn was used to simulate the effects of the non-linear dynamics of reinforced concrete structures, gases and their interactions. Reinforced concrete piers of typical highway bridges suffering an adjacent explosive were modelled. The damage level and failure mode resulting from explosion, at various distances from a pier, were quantified. The safety distance for pier explosion resistance was then recommended. This study can contribute to the reduction of the risk of terrorist attacks associated with vehicle explosion.
The fifth paper by Shirkhanghah and Kalehsar (2022) presents a numerical aerodynamic and aeroelastic investigation of a high-rise building with a raft footing rested on stiff soil subjected to wind loadings. The effect of soil deformability and structural damping on wind response was modelled by ABAQUS/CFD software. The predicted fluid and structural solutions were validated by the available test results. Through the comprehensive numerical simulations, this study found that the dynamic properties, wind reactions and displacements of the tall building could be significantly affected by the soil-structural interaction. Thus, the fixed base assumption, which is widely adopted in routine tall building design, may lead to inaccurate predictions of the wind responses.
The sixth paper by Rezaiee-Pajand et al. (2022) proposes a new six-node triangular shell element for the geometrical non-linear analysis of thin-walled sections. Due to the application of a mixed interpolation of the tensorial component method, the proposed element is free from shear and membrane locking. Furthermore, large displacements and rotations were incorporated using the total Lagrangian formulation. Numerical examples demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of the proposed element. Accurate deformations can be obtained by the use of relatively coarse mesh.
I trust that you will find this issue interesting and relevant to the structural analysis and design of new structures. Please also bear in mind that comments on these papers can be submitted in the form of Discussion articles. Furthermore, the most recent articles ahead of print are available on the ICE Virtual Library homepage, offering the community quicker access to fresh content.
