Developing a smart repair technique towards buckling capacity enhancement for imperfect thin-walled structures. This project will contribute significantly to preventing thin-walled structural members with initial defects from abrupt or progressive buckling failure. The advanced technique developed will offer substantial national benefits, such as improved structural reliability and safety, enhanced structural performance and reduced costs in civil engineering.
Seismic attenuation of structures through use of magnetorheological dampers. This project aims to improve understanding of the attenuating characteristics of the co-flowing of magnetised solid particles and fluid in a conduit subject to seismic waves generated by rapid ground movement. The distribution of magnetised solid particles in fluid plays an important role in the design of large-scale magnetorhelogical dampers for seismic conditions. These dampers promote the protection of historical str ....Seismic attenuation of structures through use of magnetorheological dampers. This project aims to improve understanding of the attenuating characteristics of the co-flowing of magnetised solid particles and fluid in a conduit subject to seismic waves generated by rapid ground movement. The distribution of magnetised solid particles in fluid plays an important role in the design of large-scale magnetorhelogical dampers for seismic conditions. These dampers promote the protection of historical structures and eliminate costly rebuilding of architectural structures. The project plans to perform experimental and numerical investigations to develop robust and accurate predictive models to improve understanding of the seismic attenuation of next-generation magnetorhelogical dampers, prevalent in semi-active control devices, and of the ability of such devices to suppress elevated structural vibrations.Read moreRead less
Buckling of Functionally Graded Multilayer Graphene Nanocomposites. This project aims to contribute to the development of novel lightweight structural members made of graphene nanocomposites with greatly enhanced resistance to abrupt or progressive buckling failure. Abrupt or progressive buckling failure under excessive compressive loads is a common and often catastrophic problem in engineering structures. The project intends to develop a functionally graded multilayer graphene nanocomposite str ....Buckling of Functionally Graded Multilayer Graphene Nanocomposites. This project aims to contribute to the development of novel lightweight structural members made of graphene nanocomposites with greatly enhanced resistance to abrupt or progressive buckling failure. Abrupt or progressive buckling failure under excessive compressive loads is a common and often catastrophic problem in engineering structures. The project intends to develop a functionally graded multilayer graphene nanocomposite structure and to conduct a combined theoretical, numerical and experimental investigation into its buckling and postbuckling behaviours, taking into account the effect of initial imperfection. The project aims to advance the knowledge base of the mechanical behaviour of lightweight nanocomposite structures with improved structural reliability.Read moreRead less
Development of Intelligent Structures that can Self-evaluate Deterioration. This project aims to transform traditional civil structures into smart structures that can accurately identify current and future structural deterioration conditions and automatically notify the infrastructure management authority for timely maintenance. Civil structures deteriorate over their long life spans. Currently, we have no effective method to identify when deterioration has reached the point where maintenance is ....Development of Intelligent Structures that can Self-evaluate Deterioration. This project aims to transform traditional civil structures into smart structures that can accurately identify current and future structural deterioration conditions and automatically notify the infrastructure management authority for timely maintenance. Civil structures deteriorate over their long life spans. Currently, we have no effective method to identify when deterioration has reached the point where maintenance is required. The project plans to develop innovative structural deterioration evaluation systems using output-only vibration data and versatile optimisation algorithms to enable long-term deterioration assessment and maintenance management even under demanding operating conditions. These could be used with both conventional data acquisition systems and modern monitoring systems with smart wireless sensors. Expected project outcomes will enhance structural safety and maintenance efficiency.Read moreRead less
Development of next generation prestressed concrete bridges using moving force identification. This project will enhance the safety of prestressed concrete bridges which constitute 70 per cent of Australian bridges and hence provide economic benefits. The procedure developed can evaluate the health status of these bridges and the prestressing force which was hitherto difficult to determine, even though it controls bridge load carrying capacity.
Next Generation Bridge Monitoring using Novel Synergic Identification. Over 70% of the bridges in Australia are made of prestressed concrete, yet many do not meet the requirements of current Australian Standards. This project aims to provide a cost-effective system for monitoring bridges in real time along with systems that track the prestressing force and rate of damage for ongoing health assessment and necessary repairs. The use of innovative engineering techniques, solving long standing probl ....Next Generation Bridge Monitoring using Novel Synergic Identification. Over 70% of the bridges in Australia are made of prestressed concrete, yet many do not meet the requirements of current Australian Standards. This project aims to provide a cost-effective system for monitoring bridges in real time along with systems that track the prestressing force and rate of damage for ongoing health assessment and necessary repairs. The use of innovative engineering techniques, solving long standing problems of engineers, will enable the safe operation of bridges, which play a primary role in Australia’s national transport system. Improved methodology for turning tired infrastructure into ‘smart bridges’ will be developed and commissioned first in Australia and then applied internationally.Read moreRead less
Safeguarding Australia’s heritage masonry buildings from earthquake attack. The project aims to improve the guidance provided in Australian and New Zealand design codes for the seismic capacity assessment of heritage masonry buildings. The majority of culturally significant heritage buildings in Australia are constructed of unreinforced masonry, and all of these buildings were erected before seismic design guidelines or requirements existed. The risk posed by earthquakes to these important build ....Safeguarding Australia’s heritage masonry buildings from earthquake attack. The project aims to improve the guidance provided in Australian and New Zealand design codes for the seismic capacity assessment of heritage masonry buildings. The majority of culturally significant heritage buildings in Australia are constructed of unreinforced masonry, and all of these buildings were erected before seismic design guidelines or requirements existed. The risk posed by earthquakes to these important buildings is significant – as highlighted by the 2011 Christchurch earthquake where both major cathedrals in the city were heavily damaged. The project aims to develop an analysis and design method that accounts for the material properties and non-typical structural layouts used in heritage stone and clay brick masonry buildings that are most relevant to seismic response.Read moreRead less
Thermal Upheaval Buckling of Functionally Graded Pavement Slabs. Upheaval buckling or blowup of concrete pavements due to high environment temperature is a serious problem in transportation infrastructure which quite often leads to road failure or even traffic hazards. The proposed project presents a combined theoretical, numerical and experimental investigation on the effective enhancement of thermal buckling capacity of pavement slabs with or without initial imperfection by using light and gre ....Thermal Upheaval Buckling of Functionally Graded Pavement Slabs. Upheaval buckling or blowup of concrete pavements due to high environment temperature is a serious problem in transportation infrastructure which quite often leads to road failure or even traffic hazards. The proposed project presents a combined theoretical, numerical and experimental investigation on the effective enhancement of thermal buckling capacity of pavement slabs with or without initial imperfection by using light and green functionally graded concrete materials with reduced usage of plain Portland cements for less carbon dioxide emissions. The research outcomes will contribute significantly to the society by offering a novel environmental friendly pavement solution with greatly improved road safety.Read moreRead less
Early-age cracking in concrete structures: mechanisms and control. This project aims to generate a comprehensive set of reliable data to examine all key factors governing the risk of early-age cracking in concrete structures, including a novel concept concerning zero-stress temperature. Expected outcomes include improved models for fundamental concrete properties from very early ages and tensile stresses due to restrained deformation accumulated from early stage, as well as guidelines for effect ....Early-age cracking in concrete structures: mechanisms and control. This project aims to generate a comprehensive set of reliable data to examine all key factors governing the risk of early-age cracking in concrete structures, including a novel concept concerning zero-stress temperature. Expected outcomes include improved models for fundamental concrete properties from very early ages and tensile stresses due to restrained deformation accumulated from early stage, as well as guidelines for effective crack control in concrete structures. It is expected these guidelines will enable significant cost savings and a more sustainable construction industry.Read moreRead less
Coupled effects of stress and temperature changes on concrete structures. The coupled effects of stress and temperature changes that concrete structures are commonly subject to are significant and need to be properly accounted for. However, existing engineering models accounting for these effects remain essentially empirical, necessarily limiting their predictive capability. This research aims to examine such coupled effects using an innovative approach combining original physical-based analytic ....Coupled effects of stress and temperature changes on concrete structures. The coupled effects of stress and temperature changes that concrete structures are commonly subject to are significant and need to be properly accounted for. However, existing engineering models accounting for these effects remain essentially empirical, necessarily limiting their predictive capability. This research aims to examine such coupled effects using an innovative approach combining original physical-based analytical study with novel tests and advanced numerical work. Expected outcomes include a robust yet simple engineering model, and guidelines for rational design of structures (incl. concrete spalling in fire) with due account for such coupled effects, thereby enabling to achieve more robust structures at substantial cost saving.Read moreRead less