Innovative Materials For Bridge Seismic Design

Abstract

Shape memory alloys (SMAs) are unique alloys that have the ability to undergo large deformation, but can recover deformations fully after the loads. The primary objective of this study was to investigate the seismic performance of RC columns with SMA longitudinal reinforcement in the plastic hinge area. Another target was to evaluate seismic performance and damage in a repaired SMAreinforced column using engineered cementitious composites (ECC). Two quarter-scale spiral RC columns with SMA longitudinal reinforcement in the plastic hinge area were designed and constructed for shake table testing at the Large Scale Structure Laboratory of the University of Nevada, Reno. The shake table data showed that SMA RC columns were able to recover nearly all of the post-yield deformation and that the use of ECC reduced the concrete damage substantially, thus requiring minimal repair even after very large earthquakes.