Prestressed stayed columns (PSCs) are structural systems whose compressive load-carrying capacity is enhanced through pre-tensioned cable stays. Much research has demonstrated that PSCs buckle subcritically when their prestressing levels maximize the critical buckling load of the theoretically perfect arrangement. Erosion of the pre-tensioned cables’ effectiveness (e.g. through creep or corrosion) can thus lead to sudden collapse. The present goal is to develop a structural health monitoring (SHM) technique for in-service PSCs that returns the current
structural utilization factor
based on selected probing measurements. Hence, PSCs with different cable erosion and varying compression levels are probed in the pre-buckling range within the numerical setting through a nonlinear finite element (FE) model. In contrast to the previous work, it is found presently that the
initial lateral stiffness
from probing a PSC provides a suitable health index for in-service structures. A machine learning-based surrogate is trained on simulated data of the loading factor, cable erosion and probing indices; it is then used as a predictive tool to return the current utilization factor for PSCs alongside the level of cable erosion given probing measurements, showing excellent accuracy and thus provides confidence that an SHM technique based on probing is indeed feasible.
This article is part of the theme issue ‘Probing and dynamics of shock sensitive shells’.
The hyperbolic paraboloid (hypar) form has been widely used in long-span roof structures and is the subject of much research under out-of-plane loading. However, the behaviour of hypars under in-plane loading has been less keenly studied, and there is no suitable guidance for their design in current codes of practice. A nonlinear analytical model treating the hypar as a deliberate imperfection applied to a flat plate is presented. A Rayleigh–Ritz formulation using appropriate shape functions is developed and the resulting equations are solved using numerical continuation techniques. The results are verified with nonlinear finite-element models, showing good correlation across a range of thicknesses and degrees of initial curvature. Key modal contributions that influence the behaviour of the hypar are identified, providing insight into the nonlinear behaviour of hypars subject to in-plane shear. The main differences in behaviour between the flat plate and the hypar panel are shown to be most prevalent in the early stages of loading, where the influence of the initial geometry is at its greatest.
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