Abstract
Sustained load problems, which can cause excessive deformation and severe damage to concrete structures, have been considered in current worldwide design codes by applying reduction factors on the compressive and tensile strength of concrete. A reduction factor in the shear design may also be required due to the decrease of shear-transfer action corresponding to the increases of the shear cracks opening. However, only a few studies are examining the effect of creep on shear performance of concrete structures, and the results are still inconclusive. As a complement to the previous experimental works, this study aims to investigate the effect of loading rate on the shear capacity of RC slender beams by non-linear finite element (FE) analysis. A spaceaveraged constitutive model with fixed multi-directional cracks was employed in the simulation of diagonal shear failure. The present study analytically examines the time-dependent effects on the beams under different loading rates until the delayed failure and compares the results with the previous experimental ones.
Highlights
Sustained load, which is practically experienced by every single structure, has received much attention in recent decades due to its severe effects
Some experimental works indicated that there is no significant effect of sustained load on shear performance of reinforced concrete (RC) slender beams
The present study applies a nonlinear finite element (FE) analysis to analyse the experimental work by the authors on shear performances of RC slender beams under different loading rates
Summary
Sustained load, which is practically experienced by every single structure, has received much attention in recent decades due to its severe effects. Depending on the duration of the sustained load and load intensity, nonlinear creep strain and micro-cracks can be potentially developed causing damage to the internal structure and reduction of concrete uniaxial compressive strength [1,2,3,4]. Many researchers on sustained load have been reported over the last decades, only some of them examined the effects on shear performance of RC structures. Some experimental works indicated that there is no significant effect of sustained load on shear performance of RC slender beams (the ratio between shear span a to effective depth d is between 2.5 and 6.5). The present study applies a nonlinear finite element (FE) analysis to analyse the experimental work by the authors on shear performances of RC slender beams under different loading rates. A possible increase in fracture energy of concrete under slower loading rates and its contribution to the shear resistance of the beams is examined through sensitivity analysis
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