New tools for inspection of gusset plates

Construction of All-Wood Trusses with Plywood Nodes and Wooden Pegs: A Strategy towards Resource-Efficient Timber Construction

Applied Sciences ◽

10.3390/app11062568 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (6) ◽

pp. 2568

Author(s):

Benjamin Kromoser ◽

Matthias Braun ◽

Maximilian Ortner

Keyword(s):

Environmental Impact ◽

Parametric Design ◽

Gusset Plates ◽

Research Areas ◽

Timber Construction ◽

First Results ◽

Building Components ◽

Numerical Optimisation ◽

Special Case

Timber truss systems are very efficient load-bearing structures. They allow for great freedom in design and are characterised by high material use in combination with a low environmental impact. Unfortunately, the extensive effort in design and production have made the manufacturing and application of these structures, in this day and age, a rarity. In addition, the currently mainly used steel gusset plates adversely affect the costs and environmental impact of the trusses. The authors’ goals are to optimise the design of timber trusses and to solely use wood for all building components. The two research areas, (1) optimisation of the truss geometry and (2) optimisation of the joints by using solely wood–wood connections, are addressed in this paper. The numerical optimisation strategy is based on a parametric design of the truss and the use of a genetic solver for the optimisation regarding minimal material consumption. Furthermore, first results of the tensile and compression behaviour of the chosen wood–wood connections are presented. The basic idea for the joints is to use a plywood plate as a connector, which is inserted into the truss members and fixed with wooden pegs. The housing of the new robot laboratory located at BOKU Vienna is considered a special case study for the research and serves as an accompanying example for the application of the research within the present paper.

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Integrity Assessment and On-Site Repair of a Floating Production Platform

24th International Conference on Offshore Mechanics and Arctic Engineering: Volume 3 ◽

10.1115/omae2005-67504 ◽

2005 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Mauro G. Marinho ◽

Alexandre M. Pope ◽

Luiz Claudio Meniconi ◽

Luiz Henrique M. Alves ◽

Cesar Del Vecchio

Keyword(s):

High Stress ◽

Local Strain ◽

Business Unit ◽

Gusset Plates ◽

Strain Measurements ◽

Integrity Assessment ◽

High Stress Concentration ◽

Production Platform ◽

Welding Defects ◽

Classification Society

Following the warning of a flooded bow horizontal brace of a semi-submersible production platform, an inspection diving team was mobilized and cracks were found at both bow and aft K-joints. Analysis of the service life of the platform, together with the results of structural analysis and local strain measurements, concluded that cracking was caused by fatigue initiated at high stress concentration points on the gusset plates inserted in the tubular joints. As a consequence of the fractured plates other cracks were nucleated close to the intersection lines of the braces that compose the K-joints. Based on this analysis different repair possibilities were proposed. To comply with the production goals of the Business Unit it was decided to repair the platform on-site and in production in agreement with the Classification Society. The proposed repair contemplated the installation of two flanges on the gusset plates between the diagonal braces by underwater wet (UWW) welding. Cracks at the gusset plates were also removed by grinding and wet welding. Defects located at the braces are being monitored and repaired by the installation of backing bars, by wet welding, followed by grinding and welding from the inside. To carry out the job two weld procedures and ten welder-divers were qualified.

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Bidirectional loading performance of gusset plates in buckling restrained braced frames

Engineering Structures ◽

10.1016/j.engstruct.2021.112521 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 242 ◽

pp. 112521

Author(s):

Saul Y. Vazquez-Colunga ◽

Chin-Long Lee ◽

Gregory A. MacRae

Keyword(s):

Braced Frames ◽

Gusset Plates ◽

Buckling Restrained Braced Frames

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Effects of Out-of-Plane Displacements on Load Capacity of Gusset Plates in Buckling Restrained Braced Frames

Key Engineering Materials ◽

10.4028/www.scientific.net/kem.763.892 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 763 ◽

pp. 892-899 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Saul Y. Vazquez-Colunga ◽

Chin Long Lee ◽

Gregory A. MacRae

Keyword(s):

Finite Element ◽

Finite Element Methods ◽

Load Capacity ◽

Numerical Results ◽

Numerical Analyses ◽

Braced Frames ◽

Gusset Plates ◽

Out Of Plane ◽

Buckling Restrained Braced Frames ◽

Monotonic Load

This study sets out to investigate the effect of out-of-plane (OOP) displacements on the monotonic load capacity of gusset plates (GPs) via numerical analyses using finite element methods. Two models were used: a) models with in-plane (INP) actions only; and b) models with both INP and OOP actions. The numerical results show that the load capacity of GPs is reduced with the presence of OOP displacements. For an OOP drift of 2.5%, the reduced capacity ranges from 95% to 80% with an average of 88% of the load capacity when only INP actions were applied.

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