Precast Solutions - March/April 2008 - (Page 25)

on a full scale, they must design their products conservatively by using additional steel, higher-strength concrete, etc., to ensure the products can meet current safety and structural standards. “This new facility will help optimize the design of precast elements,” said Dr. Ali Abolmaali, associate professor of UTA Civil & Environmental Engineering division and director of the CSER. “This will be true for all precast elements.” The sheer size of the building will allow full-scale dynamic and static testing on bridge segments and other structural members. The facility will also simulate earthquakes, blast testing and harsh weather conditions, which will provide new insights to joint/connection behavior and help producers design for earthquake, storm and blast resistant elements. “Through the research performed at the CSER facility, precasters will have the information to design a product that is both safe and economical,” said Abolmaali. “This research will help precasters optimize production in all aspects.” The facility will have several multimillion dollar hydraulic actuators and other control devices, some as big as 200 tons, which will convert hydraulic power into useful linear, rotary or oscillatory mechanical motion. The actuators will exhibit high-force capability, high power-per-unit weight and volume, good mechanical stiffness and high dynamic response. It will include more than 50,000 square feet of reaction floor and research space, and more than 30,000 square feet of office, conference, classroom and support space. Also included will be office space for faculty, graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. As a premier facility, the design calls for an iconic and expressive structural presence. The exterior appearance provides a unique signature for the facility. The vaulted thin-shell roof, cast-in-place vertical columns and projecting floor slabs express the structural properties of concrete in the design. The wall panels, the roof, and the vertical and horizontal shading devices will all be made of precast concrete. The building is designed to respond to the harsh Texas climate and to be energy efficient. Since the reaction floor will be heated and ventilated, and not fully air-conditioned, sustainable design is especially critical. The dramatic roof form opens to the north to admit indirect natural light and reduce lighting energy consumption while sloping downward to the south to prevent direct solar heat gain. The south-facing offices will incorporate horizontal overhangs in the form of projecting floor slabs to limit heat gain. To prevent heat gain from the rising sun, the east side of the building will not have glazing. To limit heat gain from the setting sun, a series of large vertical louvers will be placed in front of the office windows. ANTICIPATED IMPACT A first-floor plan hints at the enormous size of the research space – more than 50,000 square feet, at right – compared with the office space, classrooms and conference areas. The CSER facility likely will be a nationally and internationally recognized research and education facility for structural engineering. It will be one of the few facilities in the world that supports fundamental and innovative research and educational programs that focus on achieving significant advances derived from large-scale structural testing of real structural components comprising concrete, steel, masonry, stone, timber and synthetic materials. Some specific programs will focus on how these structural materials can provide new earthquake and storm resistant structures; structures to resist terrorist attacks; and intelligent infrastructure systems that assess timedependent performance (smart structures that provide early warning to potential failures). This latter point is especially important, as much of America’s infrastructure is aging and on the brink of failure. With a facility of this magnitude, opportunities for attracting federal and private industry funding for researching these structures will be significantly expanded. The identification of new materials for use in structural systems subjected to hazardous and extreme loading conditions has been at the forefront of research agendas for federal funding agencies. For example, the Department of Homeland Security has been supporting an abundance of research projects for critical infrastructures subjected to loads such as blasts, impact and fire. Other funding agencies that support this type of research activity include: National Science Foundation, Department of Defense, Department of Energy, Federal Emergency Management Agency, Federal Highway Administration, Korea Science Foundation and the Texas Department of Transportation. Owing to its size and unique capabilities, the Center is expected to attract research funds exceeding $10 million per year. MARCH/APRIL 2008 | PRECAST SOLUTIONS 25

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Precast Solutions - March/April 2008

Precast Solutions - March/April 2008 Contents Smooth Move Riding the Waves Comparing RCP With Plastic Pipe Cost-Value Analysis of Storm Sewer Pipe Concrete Testing On a Grand Scale Building Confidence

Precast Solutions - March/April 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.