Multi-level decision-making strategy for preparation of proof load and failure tests

Load testing and in some cases failure (or collapse) testing of bridges is a method to learn more about the behaviour of full-scale bridges in site conditions. Since such experiments, especially failure tests, are expensive, an extensive preparation of these tests is important. This paper addresses the question of when a bridge is a good...

Monitoring Shear Behavior of Prestressed Concrete Bridge Girders Using Acoustic Emission and Digital Image Correlation

In the Netherlands, many prestressed concrete bridge girders are found to have insufficient shear–tension capacity. We tested four girders taken from a demolished bridge and instrumented these with traditional displacement sensors and acoustic emission (AE) sensors, and used cameras for digital image correlation (DIC). The results show that AE...

Shear capacity of steel fibre reinforced concrete beams

The Critical Shear Displacement Theory (CSDT) was developed to determine the shear capacity of reinforced concrete beams based on the different shear-carrying mechanisms (concrete in the compression zone, aggregate interlock, and dowel action). This research aims at extending the CSDT to Steel Fibre Reinforced Concrete (SFRC) by adding the...

On the Potential of Lattice Type Model for Predicting Shear Capacity of Reinforced Concrete and SHCC Structures

Different analytical models exist to predict the shear strength of reinforced concrete members. Generally, each of these shear strength models consists of a formulation based on certain underlying theory and fitted model coefficients. The model fitting parameters are usually established from the comparison with test data. Hence, the predictive...