The doctoral thesis describes the possibilities of numerical modelling of hollow core concrete panels, SPIROLL type. The commercial finite element program ANSYS 13.0 is used for the modelling. The focus is on the specific flexural support of the panel and on the distribution of the shear stresses in the panel ribs near the support. The goal is to valid actually used method for homogenization of the panel’s foreheads and its influence on the shear resistance by using four numerical models. The numerical models are compared and verified with two experiments. The first experiment is vacuum loading on the hollow core slab. Second experiment is about shear loading by applying the loading blocks. Four methods for design of hollow core panels are evaluated. It is the method based on main stresses, design according EN 1992 and EN 1168 and Yang’s method of prestress effects transfer. Based on the results, a method of considering flexural support for the evaluation of hollow core panels is proposed.

Objective condition assessment is essential to make better decisions for safety and serviceability of existing civil infrastructure systems. This study explores the condition of an existing transit guideway system that has been in service for thirty-five years. The structural system is composed of six-span continuous prestressed concrete bridge segments. The overall transit system incorporates a number of continuous bridges which share common design details, geometries, and loading conditions. The original analysis is based on certain simplifying assumptions such as rigid behavior over supports and simplified tendon/concrete/steel plate interaction. The current objective is to conduct a representative study for a more accurate understanding of the structural system and its behavior. The scope of the study is to generate finite element models (FEMs) to be used in static and dynamic parameter sensitivity studies, as well load rating and reliability analysis of the structure. The FEMs are used for eigenvalue analysis and simulations. Parameter sensitivity studies consider the effect of changing critical parameters, including material properties, prestress loss, and boundary and continuity conditions, on the static and dynamic structural response. Load ratings are developed using an American Association for State Highway Transportation Officials Load and Resistance Factor Rating (AASHTO LRFR) approach. The reliability of the structural system is evaluated based on the data obtained from various finite element models. Recommendations for experimental validation of the FEM are presented. This study is expected to provide information to make better decisions for operations, maintenance and safety requirements; to be a benchmark for future studies, to establish a procedure and methodology for structural condition assessment, and to contribute to the general research body of knowledge in condition assessment and structural health monitoring.

No description available.

A new version of EN 1992-1-1, Eurocode 2 for Design of Concrete Structures, is under development and one of the most discussed topics is shear capacity for prestressed concrete beams without shear reinforcement, partly because shear failure occurs suddenly and can have catastrophic consequences. For the new version of Eurocode, there are a total of three proposed equations to replace the two equations that currently exist in EN 1992-1-1 for shear capacity of prestressed concrete beams without shear reinforcement. One of the proposed equations is intended to replace the equation intended for beam regions where bending cracks do not occur. The other two equations are proposed for beam regions where bending cracks occur. One of the proposed equations for beam regions with bending cracks, is based on critical shear crack theory and takes the normal force in consideration, while the other equation for beam regions with bending cracks is like the one found today in Eurocode, an empirical equation, where the contribution of normal force is empirical. In this thesis, all equations have been set against each other and compared with the help of nonlinear finite element analyzes and experiments which Dr. De Wilder has done in his doctoral thesis. The impact of the prestressing force on the shear force capacity of beams has also been investigated. The results show that the equations for beam regions that do not have bending cracks give identical shear force capacities. While the equation which is based on critical shear crack theory takes the shear span into consideration and captures the effect of the shear span correctly, which the other proposed equation and the one found in Eurocode today do not and are on the unsafe side for increasing shear spans. Furthermore, it turned out that the equation which is based on critical shear crack theory was rather conservative, while the equation that exists today in Eurocode gives approximately the same shear capacity as the other proposed equation. Furthermore, it was found that if the amount of longitudinal reinforcement is reduced, at the same time as the prestressing force is unchanged, an insignificant reduction in the shear capacity on prestressed concrete beams is obtained. / En ny version av EN 1992-1-1, Eurokod 2 Dimensionering av betongkonstruktioner, är under utveckling och ett av de mest diskuterade ämnena är tvärkraftskapacitet för förspända betongbalkar utan skjuvarmering, bland annat eftersom huvudspänningsskjuvbrott uppstår plötsligt och kan få katastrofala konsekvenser. Till den nya versionen av Eurokoden finns det totalt tre föreslagna ekvationer för att ersätta de två ekvationer som för närvarande finns i EN 1992-1-1 för tvärkraftskapacitet för förspända betongbalkar utan skjuvarmering. En av de föreslagna ekvationerna är tänkt att ersätta ekvationen avsedd för balkregioner där böjsprickor ej uppstår. De andra två ekvationerna är föreslagna för balkregioner där böjsprickor uppstår. En av de föreslagna ekvationerna för balkregioner med böjsprickor är baserad på kritisk skjuvsprickteorin och tar hänsyn till normalkraftens bidrag till tvärkraftskapaciteten, medan den andra föreslagna ekvationen för balkregioner med böjsprickor är likt den som idag finns i Eurokoden, en empirisk ekvation, där normala kraftens bidrag är baserad på ett empiriskt tillägg. I detta examensarbete har alla ekvationer ställts mot varandra och jämförts med hjälp utav icke-linjär finit-elementanalyser samt experiment som Dr. De Wilder gjort i sin doktorsavhandling. Vidare har också förspänningskraftens påverkan på balkars tvärkraftskapacitet undersökts. Resultaten visar att ekvationerna för balkregioner som ej har böjsprickor ger identiska tvärkraftskapaciteter. Medan ekvationen som är baserad på kritisk skjuvsprickteorin tar hänsyn till skjuvspännvidd och fångar effekten av skjuvspännvidden korrekt, vilket den andra föreslagna ekvationen och den som finns i Eurokoden idag inte gör och är på den osäkra sidan för ökad skjuvspännvidd. Dessutom visade det sig att ekvationen som är baserad på kritisk skjuvsprickteori är tämligen konservativ, medan ekvationen som finns idag i Eurokoden ger ungefär samma tvärkraftskapacitet som den andra föreslagna ekvationen. Vidare visade det sig att ifall man minskar mängden längsgående armering, samtidigt som förspänningskraften är oförändrad, så fås en obetydlig minskning utav tvärkraftskapaciteten på förspända betongbalkar.

The goal of the project is a static provision design of Drnovice castle. This castle (today a municipal office and a restaurant) is violated by vertical cracks. There is a significant horizontal displacement vector. That’s why horizontal prestress redevelopment (using prestressed cables) was chosen. A drawing documentation is an integral part of the project.

The Diploma’s thesis deals with the design of selected parts of reinforced and prestressed concrete structure. Internal forces were solved by software SCIA ENGINEER. Prestress concrete element was solved by module TDA. Phases of construction were considered. Detailed solution is focused on the design of reinforced concrete floor slab with joists within the basement, reinforced concrete beam with five spans within the basement, reinforced girder within the basement, reinforced column within the basement, reinforced footing and prestressed concrete joist within the basement. Drawings of shape and drawings of reinforcement are included in this thesis. Other elements of construction were not solved in this thesis.

Assessing existing bridges is an important task in the sustainable management ofinfrastructure. In practice, structural bridge assessments are usually conducted usingtraditional and standardised methods, despite knowledge that these methods oftenprovide conservative estimates. In addition, more advanced methods are available, suchas nonlinear finite element (FE) analysis, that are used for research purposes and cansimulate the structural behaviour of bridges more accurately. Therefore, it would beuseful to develop practical and reliable procedures for refined assessments using theseadvanced techniques.Focusing on the ultimate load-carrying capacity of existing concrete bridges, this thesispresents a procedure for structural assessments. The fundamental idea is to improve theassessment successively, as necessary to predict bridges’ structural behaviour adequately.The procedure involves a multi-level assessment strategy with four levels of structuralanalysis, and an integrated framework for safety verification. At the initial level (Level 1)of the multi-level strategy, traditional standardised methods are used, no failures arecovered implicitly in the structural analysis and action effects are verified using localresistances calculated using analytical models. In the subsequent enhanced levels (Levels2 – 4), nonlinear FE analysis is used for stepwise integration of the verification of flexural,shear-related and anchorage failures into the structural analysis. The framework for safetyverifications includes partial safety factor (PSF), global resistance safety factor (GRSF) andfull probabilistic methods. Within each of these groups, verifications of desired safetymargins can be conducted with varying degrees of complexity.To demonstrate and evaluate the proposed structural assessment procedure, comparativestudies have been carried out, based on full-scale tests of a prestressed concrete bridge.This was the Kiruna Bridge, located in the northernmost city in Sweden, which was duefor demolition as part of a city transformation project, necessitated by large grounddeformations caused by the large nearby mine. Thus, it was available for destructiveexperimental investigation within the doctoral project presented in this thesis. The bridgehad five continuous spans, was 121.5 m long and consisted of three parallel girders with a connecting slab at the top. Both the girders and slab were tested to failure to investigatetheir structural behaviour and load-carrying capacity. Non-destructive and destructivetests were also applied to determine the residual prestress forces in the bridge girders andinvestigate the in situ applicability of methods developed for this purpose. The so-calledsaw-cut method and decompression-load method were used after refinement to enabletheir application to structures of such complexity. The variation of the experimentallydetermined residual prestress forces was remarkably high, depending on the sectioninvestigated. There were also high degrees of uncertainty in estimated values, and thusare only regarded as indications of the residual prestress force.Level 1 analysis of the multi-level assessment strategy consistently underestimatedcapacity, relative to the test results, and did not provide accurate predictions of the shearrelatedfailure observed in the test. With linear FE analysis and local resistance modelsdefined by the European standard, Eurocode 2, the load-carrying capacity wasunderestimated by 32 % for the bridge girder and 55 % for the bridge deck slab. At theenhanced level of structural analysis (Level 3), nonlinear FE analyses predicted thecapacities with less than 2 % deviation from the test results and correctly predicted thefailure mode. However, for existing bridges there are many uncertainties, for instance,the FE simulations were sensitive to the level of residual prestressing, boundaryconditions and assumed material parameters. To accurately take these aspects intoaccount, bridge-specific information is crucial.The complete structural assessment procedure, combining the multi-level strategy andsafety verification framework, was evaluated in a case study. Experiences from theprevious comparative studies were used in an assessment of the Kiruna Bridge followingthe Swedish assessment code. The initial assessment at Level 1 of the multi-level strategyand safety verification, using the PSF method, indicated that the shear capacity of one ofthe girders was critical. The most adverse load case (a combination of permanent loads,prestressing and variable traffic loads) was further investigated through enhancedstructural analyses implicitly accounting for flexural and shear-related failures (Level 3).Nonlinear FE analysis and safety evaluation using the PSF method, several variants of theGRSF method and the full probabilistic analysis for resistance indicated that the permittedaxle load for the critical classification vehicle could be 5.6 – 6.5 times higher than thelimit obtained from the initial assessment at Level 1. However, the study also indicatedthat the model uncertainty was not fully considered in these values. The modeluncertainty was shown to have strong effects on the safety verification and (thus)permissible axle loads. The case study also highlighted the need for a strategy forsuccessively improving structural analysis to improve understanding of bridges’ structuralbehaviour. The refined analysis indicated a complex failure mode, with yielding of thestirrups in the bridge girders and transverse flexural reinforcement in the bridge deck slab,but with a final shear failure of the slab. It would be impossible to capture suchcomplexity in a traditional standardised assessment, which (as mentioned) indicated thatthe shear capacity of the girder limited permissible axle loads. However, nonlinear FEanalyses are computationally demanding, and numerous modelling choices are required.Besides a strategy for rationally improving the analysis and helping analysts to focus oncritical aspects, detailed guidelines for nonlinear FE analysis should be applied to reduce the analyst-dependent variability of results and (thus) the model uncertainty. Clearly, toensure the validity of bridge assessment methods under in situ conditions, theirevaluations should include in situ tests. This thesis presents outcomes of such tests, therebyhighlighting important aspects for future improvements in the assessment of existingbridges.

The diploma thesis deals with the strenghtening of the supporting parts of the production hall in Drásov. In the first part the existing load bearing capacity of the structure is solved. The next step is to design of strenghtening variants for nonconforming columns and short corbel. Columns and short corbel are strenghtening with monostrand. At the end of the thesis, verification of the load bearing capacity of the strenghtening structure is performed.

The subject of the diploma thesis is the bridging design of the valley and Doľanský potok on the D1 motorway in the section Jánovce - Jablonov in Slovakia. Three variants of bridging have been designed and then compared. A post-tensioned construction of the box girder cross section was chosen as the most suitable variant, which was further checked. The static calculation was drawn up according to European standards.

The thesis is a design of a bridge crossing the valley of the Hrabyňka creek as a part of road I/II. Firstly, three possible structures are designed and according to their advantages and disadvantages, the best of them is selected. In this case a cable stay bridge was selected. Following is a design of span lenghths, collumn heights and the cross-section. Then the loads are detremined and applied on a numeric model cretaed in software working on the basis of FEM. In continuation internal forces are calculated and their propriate combinations for service limit stay and ultimate limit state with time dependent analysis taken into account. In the end the reinforcement steel is designed for one part of the structure. Detailed drawings are also part of the thesis.