Title: Seismic Retrofit with Discontinuous Slurry Infiltrated Mat Concrete (SIMCON) Jackets

Author(s): N. Krstulovic-Opara, J. M. LaFave, E. Dogan, and C.-M. Uang

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 185

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 141-186

Keywords: composite materials; concretes; construction materials; metal fibers; slurry

DOI: 10.14359/5715

Date: 2/1/2000

Abstract:
Older reinforced concrete structures constructed in seismically active areas of the United States are usually non-ductile and are thus identified as hazardous. Extensive efforts have been devoted to the development of adequate retrofitting techniques for these buildings. While laboratory studies have shown that the use of "conventional" Fiber Reinforced Concretes (FRCs) and High Performance FRCs (HPFRCs) in new construction leads to substantially improved seismic response, seismic retrofit techniques have not yet taken advantage of these advanced composites. The advantages of conventional FRCs is a significant increase in ductility over that of reinforced concrete. The advantage of HPFRCs is that, when loaded beyond the elastic limit, they exhibit significant increases in structure to dissipate energy--a feature particularly desirable for earthquake resistant design. The goal of the presented research was to develop a novel seismic retrofit technique, using recently developed HPFRCs, to solve the following common problems of non-seismically designed reinforced concrete frames: 1) inadequate anchorage of the discontinuous bottom beam reinforcement, 2) inadequate confinement of the column lap splices, and 3) inadequate confinement of the joint. HPFRCs used in the presented research include Slurry Infiltrated Fiber Concrete (SIFCON) and Slurry Infiltrated Mat Concrete (SIMCON). The presented research was conducted in collaboration with a project Advisory Panel consisting of consulting structural engineer from Wiss, Janney, Elstner Associates, Inc.