This paper presents an experimental and numerical study which was carried out to examine the influence of the size and the layout of the web openings on the load carrying capacity and the serviceability of reinforced concrete deep beams. Five full-scale simply supported reinforced concrete deep beams with two large web openings created in shear regions were tested up to failure. The shear span to overall depth ratio was (1.1). Square openings were located symmetrically relative to the midspan section either at the midpoint or at the interior boundaries of the shear span. Two different side dimensions for the square openings were considered, mainly, (200) mm and (230) mm. The strength results proved that the shear capacity of the dee

This research is devoted to study the strengthening technique for the existing reinforced concrete beams using external post-tensioning. An analytical methodology is proposed to predict the value of the effective prestress force for the external tendons required to close cracks in existing beams. The external prestressing force required to close cracks in existing members is only a part from the total strengthening force.
A computer program created by Oukaili (1997) and developed by Alhawwassi (2008) to evaluate curvature and deflection for reinforced concrete beams or internally prestressed concrete beams is modified to evaluate the deflection and the stress of the external tendons for the externally strengthened beams using Matlab

Rutting has a significant impact on the pavements' performance. Rutting depth is often used as a parameter to assess the quality of pavements. The Asphalt Institute (AI) design method prescribes a maximum allowable rutting depth of 13mm, whereas the AASHTO design method stipulates a critical serviceability index of 2.5 which is equivalent to an average rutting depth of 15mm. In this research, static and repeated compression tests were performed to evaluate the permanent strain based on (1) the relationship between mix properties (asphalt content and type), and (2) testing temperature. The results indicated that the accumulated plastic strain was higher during the repeated load test than that during the static load tests. Notably, temperatur

In this study, multi-objective optimization of nanofluid aluminum oxide in a mixture of water and ethylene glycol (40:60) is studied. In order to reduce viscosity and increase thermal conductivity of nanofluids, NSGA-II algorithm is used to alter the temperature and volume fraction of nanoparticles. Neural network modeling of experimental data is used to obtain the values of viscosity and thermal conductivity on temperature and volume fraction of nanoparticles. In order to evaluate the optimization objective functions, neural network optimization is connected to NSGA-II algorithm and at any time assessment of the fitness function, the neural network model is called. Finally, Pareto Front and the corresponding optimum points are provided and

In Australia, most of the existing buildings were designed before the release of the Australian standard for earthquake actions in 2007. Therefore, many existing buildings in Australia lack adequate seismic design, and their seismic performance must be assessed. The recent earthquake that struck Mansfield, Victoria near Melbourne elevated the need to produce fragility curves for existing reinforced concrete (RC) buildings in Australia. Fragility curves are frequently utilized to assess buildings’ seismic performance and it is defined as the demand probability surpassing capacity at a given intensity level. Numerous factors can influence the results of the fragility assessment of RC buildings. Among the most important factors that can affe

Concrete structures are exposed to aggressive environmental conditions that lead to corrosion of the embedded reinforcement and pre-stressing steel. Consequently, the safety of concrete structures may be compromised, and this requires a significant budgets to repair and maintain critical infrastructure. Prediction of structural safety can lead to significant reductions in maintenance costs by maximizing the impact of investments. The aim of this paper is to establish a framework to assess the reliability of existing post-tensioned concrete bridges. A time-dependent reliability analysis of an existing post-tensioned involving the assessment of Ynys-y-Gwas bridge has been presented in this study. The main cause of failure of this bridge was c

Self-compacted concrete (SCC) considered as a revolution progress in concrete technology due to its ability for flowing through forms, fusion with reinforcement, compact itself by its weight without using vibrators and economic advantages. This research aims to assess the fresh properties of SCC and study their effect on its compressive strength using different grading zones and different fineness modulus (F.M) of fine aggregate. The fineness modulus used in this study was (2.73, 2.82,2.9& 3.12) for different zones of grading (zone I, zone II& marginal zone(between zone I&II)) according to Iraqi standards (I.Q.S No.45/1984).Twelve mixes were prepared, each mix were tested in fresh state with slump, V-Funnel and L-Box tests, then 72

Self-compacted concrete (SCC) considered as a revolution progress in concrete technology due to its ability for flowing through forms, fusion with reinforcement, compact itself by its weight without using vibrators and economic advantages. This research aims to assess the fresh properties of SCC and study their effect on its compressive strength using different grading zones and different fineness modulus (F.M) of fine aggregate. The fineness modulus used in this study was (2.73, 2.82,2.9& 3.12) for different zones of grading (zone I, zone II& marginal zone(between zone I&II)) according to Iraqi standards (I.Q.S No.45/1984).Twelve mixes were prepared, each mix were tested in fresh state with slump, V-Funnel and L-Box tests, t