Condition Assessment of Aged Structures

Any structural system in service is subject to age-related deterioration, leading to potential concerns regarding maintenance, health & safety, environmental and economic implications. Condition assessment of aged structures is an invaluable, single source of information on structural assessment techniques for marine and land-based structures such as ships, offshore installations, industrial plant and buildings. Topics covered include: - Current practices and standards for structural condition assessment - Fundamental mechanisms and advanced mathematical methods for predicting structural deterioration - Residual strength assessment of deteriorated structures - Inspection and maintenance of aged structures - Reliability and risk assessment of aged structures Professionals from a broad range of disciplines will be able to gain a better understanding of current practices and standards for structural condition assessment or health monitoring, and what future trends might be. Single source of information on structural assessment techniques for marine and land-based structures Examines the residual strength and reliability of aged structures Assesses current practices covering inspection, health monitoring and maintenance

In Structural Condition Assessment, editor-in-chief Robert T. Ratay gathers together the leading people in the field to produce the first unified resource on all aspects of structural condition assessment for strength, serviceability, restoration, adaptive reuse, code compliance, and vulnerability. Organized by the four main stages of a structural evaluation, this book provides an introduction to structural deterioration and its consequences, the business and legal aspects of conducting an evaluation, initial survey and evaluation techniques for various structures, and specific tests for five of the most common structural materials (concrete, steel, masonry, timber and fabric.)

This book describes principles, industry practices and evolutionary methodologies for advanced safety studies, which are helpful in effectively managing volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous (VUCA) environments within the framework of quantitative risk assessment and management and associated with the safety and resilience of structures and infrastructures with tolerance against various types of extreme conditions and accidents such as fires, explosions, collisions and grounding. It presents advanced computational models for characterizing structural actions and their effects in extreme and accidental conditions, which are highly nonlinear and non-Gaussian in association with multiple physical processes, multiple scales, and multiple criteria. Probabilistic scenario selection practices and applications are presented. Engineering practices for structural crashworthiness analysis in extreme conditions and accidents are described. Multidisciplinary approaches involving advanced computational models and large-scale physical model testing are emphasized. The book will be useful to students at a post-graduate level as well as researchers and practicing engineers.

Understanding and recognising failure mechanisms in concrete is a fundamental pre-requisite to determining the type of repair, or whether a repair is feasible. This title provides a review of concrete deterioration and damage, as well as looking at the problem of defects in concrete. It also discusses condition assessment and repair techniques. Part one discusses failure mechanisms in concrete and covers topics such as causes and mechanisms of deterioration in reinforced concrete, types of damage in concrete structures, types and causes of cracking and condition assessment of concrete structures. Part two reviews the repair of concrete structures with coverage of themes such as standards and guidelines for repairing concrete structures, methods of crack repair, repair materials, bonded concrete overlays, repairing and retrofitting concrete structures with fiber-reinforced polymers, patching deteriorated concrete structures and durability of repaired concrete. With its distinguished editor and international team of contributors, Failure and repair of concrete structures is a standard reference for civil engineers, architects and anyone working in the construction sector, as well as those concerned with ensuring the safety of concrete structures. Provides a review of concrete deterioration and damage Discusses condition assessment and repair techniques, standards and guidelines

Structural Reliability Analysis and Prediction, Third Edition is a textbook which addresses the important issue of predicting the safety of structures at the design stage and also the safety of existing, perhaps deteriorating structures. Attention is focused on the development and definition of limit states such as serviceability and ultimate strength, the definition of failure and the various models which might be used to describe strength and loading. This book emphasises concepts and applications, built up from basic principles and avoids undue mathematical rigour. It presents an accessible and unified account of the theory and techniques for the analysis of the reliability of engineering structures using probability theory. This new edition has been updated to cover new developments and applications and a new chapter is included which covers structural optimization in the context of reliability analysis. New examples and end of chapter problems are also now included.

The condition assessment of aged structures is becoming a more and more important issue for civil infrastructure management systems. The continued use of existing systems is, due to environmental, economical and socio-political assets, of great significance and is growing larger every year. Thus the extent of necessary repair of damaged reinforced concrete structures is of major concern in most countries today. Monitoring techniques may have a decisive input to limit expenditures for maintenance and repair of existing structures. Modern test and measurement methods as well as computational mechanics open the door for a wide variety of monitoring applications. The need for quantitative and qualitative knowledge has led to the development and improvement of surveillance techniques, which have already found successful application in other disciplines such as medicine, physics and chemistry. The design of experimental test and measurement systems is inherently an interdisciplinary activity. The specification of the instrumentation to measure the structural response will involve the skills of civil, electrical and computer engineers. The main aim of fib Commission 5, Structural servicer life aspects, is to provide a rational procedure to obtain an optimal technical-economic performance of concrete structures in service and to ensure a feedback of experience gained to design, execution, maintenance and rehabilitation. Against this background fib Task Group 5.1 Monitoring and Safety Evaluation of Existing Concrete Structures had been established to evaluate the existing practice worldwide. The objective of this state-of-art report is to summarize the most important inspection and measuring methods, to describe the working process and to evaluate the applicability to structural monitoring. Particular emphasis is placed upon non-destructive systems, lifetime monitoring, data evaluation and safety aspects.

A reference for engineers and regulatory officials involved in the preservation or restoration of buildings, or in strengthening them to meet new codes or increased load from a change of use. The treatment is suggestive rather than inclusive or prescriptive. Acidic paper. Annotation copyright Book N

This book presents the latest research findings in the field of maintenance and safety of aging infrastructure. The invited contributions provide an overview of the use of advanced computational and/or experimental techniques in damage and vulnerability assessment as well as maintenance and retrofitting of aging structures and infrastructures such as buildings, bridges, lifelines and ships. Cost-efficient maintenance and management of civil infrastructure requires balanced consideration of both structural performance and the total cost accrued over the entire life-cycle considering uncertainties. In this context, major topics treated in this book include aging structures, climate adaptation, climate change, corrosion, cost, damage assessment, decision making, extreme events, fatigue life, hazards, hazard mitigation, inspection, life-cycle performance, maintenance, management, NDT methods, optimization, redundancy, reliability, repair, retrofit, risk, robustness, resilience, safety, stochastic control, structural health monitoring, sustainability, uncertainties and vulnerability. Applications include bridges, buildings, dams, marine structures, pavements, power distribution poles, offshore platforms, stadiums and transportation networks. This up-to-date overview of the field of maintenance and safety of aging infrastructure makes this book a must-have reference work for those involved with structures and infrastructures, including students, researchers and practitioners.

Structural health monitoring is an extremely important methodology in evaluating the 'health' of a structure by assessing the level of deterioration and remaining service life of civil infrastructure systems. This book reviews key developments in research, technologies and applications in this area of civil engineering. It discusses ways of obtaining and analysing data, sensor technologies and methods of sensing changes in structural performance characteristics. It also discusses data transmission and the application of both individual technologies and entire systems to bridges and buildings. With its distinguished editors and international team of contributors, Structural health monitoring of civil infrastructure systems is a valuable reference for students in civil and structural engineering programs as well as those studying sensors, data analysis and transmission at universities. It will also be an important source for practicing civil engineers and designers, engineers and researchers developing sensors, network systems and methods of data transmission and analysis, policy makers, inspectors and those responsible for the safety and service life of civil infrastructure. Reviews key developments in research, technologies and applications Discusses systems used to obtain and analyse data and sensor technologies Assesses methods of sensing changes in structural performance

This manual provides technical information to aid utility managers and engineers in making informed decisions, along with practical information about how methods can be deployed.

Concrete is a global material that underwrites commercial wellbeing and social development. There is no substitute that can be used on the same engineering scale and its sustainability, expolitation and further development are imperatives to creating and maintaing a healthy economy and environment worldwide. The pressure for change and improvement of performance is relentless and necessary. Concrete must keep evolving to satisfy the increasing demands of all its users.

The success of a repair or rehabilitation project depends on the specific plans designed for it. Concrete Structures: Protection, Repair and Rehabilitation provides guidance on evaluating the condition of the concrete in a structure, relating the condition of the concrete to the underlying cause or causes of that condition, selecting an appropriate repair material and method for any deficiency found, and using the selected materials and methods to repair or rehabilitate the structure. Guidance is also provided for engineers focused on maintaining concrete and preparing concrete investigation reports for repair and rehabilitation projects. Considerations for certain specialized types of rehabilitation projects are also given. In addition, the author translates cryptic codes, theories, specifications and details into easy to understand language. Tip boxes are used to highlight key elements of the text as well as code considerations based on the International Code Council or International Building Codes. The book contains various worked out examples and equations. Case Studies will be included along with diagrams and schematics to provide visuals to the book. Deals primarily with evaluation and repair of concrete structures Provides the reader with a Step by Step method for evaluation and repair of Structures Covers all types of Concrete structures ranging from bridges to sidewalks Handy tables outlining the properties of certain types of concrete and their uses

Marine Concrete Structures: Design, Durability and Performance comprehensively examines structures located in, under, or in close proximity to the sea. A major emphasis of the book is on the long-term performance of marine concrete structures that not only represent major infrastructure investment and provision, but are also required to operate with minimal maintenance. Chapters review the design, specification, construction, and operation of marine concrete structures, and examine their performance and durability in the marine environment. A number of case studies of significant marine concrete structures from around the world are included which help to reinforce the principles outlined in earlier chapters and provide useful background to these types of structures. The result is a thorough and up-to-date reference source that engineers, researchers, and postgraduate students in this field will find invaluable. Covers, in detail, the design, specification, construction, and operation of marine concrete structures Examines the properties and performance of concrete in the marine environment Provides case studies on significant marine concrete structures and durability-based design from around the world

Incorporating Sustainable Practice in Mechanics of Structures and Materials is a collection of peer-reviewed papers presented at the 21st Australasian Conference on the Mechanics of Structures and Materials (ACMSM21, Victoria, University, Melbourne, Australia, 7th 10th of December 2010). The contributions from academics, researchers and practisin

This collection contains 58 papers on infrastructure condition assessment presented at a conference sponsored by the Facilities Management Committee of the Urban Transportation Division of ASCE, held in Boston, Massachusetts, August 25-27, 1997.

Snow avalanches can have highly destructive consequences in developed areas. Each year, avalanche catastrophes occur in mountain regions around the globe and cause unnecessary fatalities and severe damage to buildings and infrastructure. In some mountainous regions, especially in the European Alps, technical avalanche defence structures are built to increase the level of safety for inhabited areas; however, new infrastructure such as roads, railway lines and tourist facilities cause new risk potential in hazardous areas. As a result, the demand is increasing for technical avalanche protection solutions. Avalanche defence structures and protection systems are used in most inhabited mountain regions worldwide. During the last decades, technical avalanche protection has evolved from a specialist field to an independent engineering branch that has gained importance in alpine countries such as Austria, Italy, France and Switzerland, as well as in other countries such as Canada, Iceland, Norway and USA. This work is the first comprehensive, English-language overview of technical avalanche protection and establishes state-of-the-art best practices in the field. It covers the fundamentals of avalanche protection technology and includes plans, dimensions, construction and maintenance of defence structures. The editors have collaborated with an international team of experts from Austria, Canada, France, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Norway, Switzerland and USA to produce this landmark handbook.

This book is organized around the various sensing techniques used to achieve structural health monitoring. Its main focus is on sensors, signal and data reduction methods and inverse techniques, which enable the identification of the physical parameters, affected by the presence of the damage, on which a diagnostic is established. Structural Health Monitoring is not oriented by the type of applications or linked to special classes of problems, but rather presents broader families of techniques: vibration and modal analysis; optical fibre sensing; acousto-ultrasonics, using piezoelectric transducers; and electric and electromagnetic techniques. Each chapter has been written by specialists in the subject area who possess a broad range of practical experience. The book will be accessible to students and those new to the field, but the exhaustive overview of present research and development, as well as the numerous references provided, also make it required reading for experienced researchers and engineers.

This collection contains 16 papers presented at a symposium on condition monitoring of materials and structures at the Engineering Mechanics Conference, held in Austin, Texas, May 2000.