In this study, the effect of construction joints on the performance of reinforced concrete beams was experimentally investigated. Seven beam specimens, with dimensions of 200×100×1000 mm, were fabricated. The variables were considered including; the location and configuration of the joints. One beam was cast without a joint (Reference specimen), two specimens were fabricated with a one horizontal joint located either at tension, or compression zone. The fourth
beam had two horizontal joints placed at tension, and compression area. The remaining specimens were with one or two inclined joints positioned at the shear span or beam’s mid-span. The specimens were subjected to a monotonic central concentrated loading until the failure. T

Dissolution of gypsum rock in water is significant, which may result in hydrocarbon reservoir formation and evaporate deposits. However, the complexity of the gypsum dissolution process is still of interest because of its uncleanness that requires more critical analysis. The objectives of this experimental study are emphasis on the dissolution characteristics of gypsum rock under room temperature and by various types of water; namely: deionized, tap, fresh, acidic, well, and normal rainwatre. In addition, the influences of dissolution on gypsum rock's mechanical and physical characteristics. Gypsum rock was obtained from Agjalar area, in the southwest of Sulaymaniyah city, Northern Iraq. Experimental results show that we

The aim of this study is to propose mathematical expressions for estimation of the flexural strength of plain concrete members from ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) measurements. More than two hundred pieces of precast concrete kerb units were subjected to a scheduled test program. The tests were divided into two categories; non-destructive ultrasonic and bending or rupture tests. For each precast unit, direct and indirect (surface) ultrasonic pulses were subjected to the concrete media to measure their travel velocities. The results of the tests were monitored in two graphs so that two mathematical relationships can be drawn. Direct pulse velocity versus the flexural strength was given in the first relationship while the second equation des

The aim of this study is to propose mathematical expressions for estimation of the flexural strength of plain concrete members from ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) measurements. More than two hundred
pieces of precast concrete kerb units were subjected to a scheduled test program. The tests were divided into two categories; non-destructive ultrasonic and bending or rupture tests. For each precast unit, direct and indirect (surface) ultrasonic pulses were subjected to the concrete media to measure their travel velocities. The results of the tests were mointered in two graphs so that two mathematical relationships can be drawn. Direct pulse velocity versus the flexural strength was given in the first relationship while the second equati

Gypseous soils are common in several regions in the world including Iraq, where more than 28.6% of its surface is covered with this type of soil. This soil, with high gypsum content, causes different problems for construction and strategic projects. As a result of water flow through the soil mass, the permeability and chemical arrangement of these soils varies with time due to the solubility and leaching of gypsum. In this study, the soil of 36% gypsum content, was taken from one location about 100 km southwest of Baghdad, where the samples were taken from depths (0.5 - 1) m below the natural ground and mixed with (3%, 6%, 9%) of Copolymer and Novolac polymer to improve the engineering properties that include: collapsibility, perm

In this study, simply supported reinforced concrete (RC) beams were analyzed using the Extended Finite Element Method (XFEM). This is a powerful method that is used for the treatment of discontinuities resulting from the fracture process and crack propagation in concrete. The mesoscale is used in modeling concrete as a two-phasic material of coarse aggregate and cement mortar. Air voids in the cement paste will also be modeled. The coarse aggregate used in the casting of these beams is a rounded aggregate consisting of different maximum sizes. The maximum size is 25 mm in the first model, and in the second model, the maximum size is 20 mm. The compressive strength used in these beams is equal to 26 MPa.

The subje

In this study, a predicated formula is been proposed to find the shear strength of non-prismatic beams with or without openings. It depends on the contributions of concrete shear strength considering the beam depth variation and existing openings, shear steel reinforcements and defines the critical shear section, the effect of diagonal shear reinforcement, the effect of inclined tensile steel reinforcement, and the compression chord influence. The verification of the proposed formula has been conducted on the experimental test results of 26 non-prismatic beams with or without openings at the same loading conditions. The results reflect that the predicted formula finds the shear capacity of non-prismatic beams with openings, it is co

t-Self-Compacting Concrete (SCC) reduces environmental noise and has more workability. This research presents an investigation of the behavior of SCC under mechanical loading (impact loading). Two types of cement have been used to produce SCC mixtures, Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC) and Portland Limestone Cement (PLC), which reduces the emission of carbon dioxide during the manufacturing process. The mixes were reinforced with Carbon Fiber Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) which is usually used to improve the seismic performance of masonry walls, to replace lost steel reinforcements, or to increase column strength and ductility. Workability tests were carried out for fresh SCC. Prepared concrete slabs of 500×500×50mm were tested for lo

Experimental research was carried out to investigate the performance of CFRP wrapping jackets used for retrofitting twelve square reinforced concrete (CR) column specimens damaged by exposure to fire flame, at different temperatures of  300, 500 and 700ºC, except for two specimens that were not burned. The specimens were then loaded axially till failure after gradual or sudden cooling. The specimens were divided into two groups containing two main reinforcement ratios, ρ= 0.0314 and ρ= 0.0542. This was followed by the retrofitting procedure that included wrapping all the specimens with two layers of CFRP fabric sheets. The test results of the retrofitted specimens showed that the fire damaged RC

This paper presents theoretical parametric study of the curvature ductility capacity for reinforced concrete column sections. The study considers the behavior of concrete and reinforcing steel under different strain rates. A computer program has been written to compute the curvature ductility taking into account the spalling in concrete cover. Strain rate sensitive constitutive models of steel and concrete were used for predicting the moment-curvature relationship of reinforced concrete columns at different rate of straining. The study parameters are the yield strength of main reinforcement, yield strength of transverse reinforcement, compressive strength of concrete, spacing of ties and the axial load. The results indicated that hi