Lattice Girder Elements - Investigation of Structural Behaviour and Performance Enhancements

In an ongoing research programme at Chalmers University of Technology, a study was made of the structural behaviour of lattice girder elements. The project was initiated by AB Fardig Betong and Thomas Concrete together with Chalmers as a response to the growing demand for improved construction methods for in-situ cast concrete structures. The study was based on experiments as well as numerical analyses. Its purpose was to gain knowledge of the structural behaviour and identify performance enhancements enabled by new materials. Through a deep understanding of the structural behaviour coupled with the possibilities to virtually investigate the effects of different material properties, new opportunities are available for an economical and safe way of introducing and using new materials. In the numerical analyses, four different types of concrete were investigated: a normal-strength concrete (C30), a fibre-reinforced normal-strength concrete (FRC30), a high-strength concrete (C80), and a fibre-reinforced high-strength concrete (FRC80). The results show that the structural behaviour of the lattice girder elements can be simulated and that, by changing the behaviour and properties of the concrete, both the peak load and the stiffness of the elements can be increased. For high-strength concrete an increased toughness seems to be important.

[1]  Ingemar Löfgren.  IN-SITU CAST CONCRETE BUILDING IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF INDUSTRIALISED CONSTRUCTION , 2002 .

[2]  Y Lin.  Tragverhalten von Stahlfaserbeton , 1999 .

[3]  M. Neil James.  Engineering Materialism and Structural Integrity , 1998 .

[4]  S. Al-Fayadh.  Cracking Behaviour of Reinforced Concrete Tensile Members , 2001 .

[5]  B. L. Karihaloo,et al.  Optimization techniques for the design of high-performance fibre-reinforced concrete , 2001 .

[6]  Victor C. Li.  From Micromechanics to Structural Engineering - The Design of Cementitious Composites for Civil Engi , 1993 .

[7]  H. W. Reinhardt,et al.  Experimental determination of crack softening characteristics of normalweight and lightweight concrete , 1986 .

[8]  Victor C. Li,et al.  Technological Implications of Concrete Fracture Research--An Overview of Tensile Failure in Cementitious Materials and Structures , 1990, SP-118: Fracture Mechanics: Application to Concrete.

[9]  A. M. Brandt,et al.  Optimization of the material structure and composition of cement based composites , 1996 .

[10]  Denis Mitchell,et al.  INFLUENCE OF STEEL FIBERS ON TENSION STIFFENING , 1997 .

[11]  R. G. Selby,et al.  Three-dimensional Constitutive Relations for Reinforced Concrete , 1993 .

[12]  Ingemar Lövgren.  Lattice Girder Elements in Bending: Pilot Experiment. , 2001 .

[13]  V. Li,et al.  Design and structural applications of stress-crack width relations in fibre reinforced concrete , 1995 .

[14]  A. Hillerborg,et al.  Analysis of crack formation and crack growth in concrete by means of fracture mechanics and finite elements , 1976 .

[15]  E. Thorenfeldt.  Mechanical properties of high-strength concrete and applications in design , 1987 .

[16]  Keivan Noghabai,et al.  Effect of tension softening on the performance of concrete structures : experimental, analytical and computational studies , 1998 .

[17]  Michael P. Collins,et al.  COMPRESSION RESPONSE OF CRACKED REINFORCED CONCRETE , 1993 .

[18]  Kent Gylltoft,et al.  In-situ Concrete Building - important aspects of industrialised construction , 2001 .