Title: Reserve Strength and Rehabilitation of a Reinforced Concrete Building

Author(s): E. Citipitioglu, H. Sucuoglu, and S Itipitioglu, H. Sucuoglu. and S. Altin

Publication: Symposium Paper

Volume: 128

Issue:

Appears on pages(s): 1347-1362

Keywords: concrete slabs; damage; explosions; partition walls; rehabilitation; reinforced concrete; repairs; safety; school buildings; shoring; strength; structural analysis; General

DOI: 10.14359/3852

Date: 11/1/1991

Abstract:
A six-story reinforced concrete military school building in Ankara, Turkey was severely damaged as a result of a steam boiler explosion in the basement. Damage was localized to the first and second stories. Upper floors survived the explosion with minor cracks even though three basement- and two first-floor columns, together with the connecting beams and slabs, were totally demolished. The building was repaired in 1988 in accordance with the procedure and specifications prepared by the two senior authors. The most critical decision was to allow workers into the damaged building to clear the debris and to set up temporary shoring for final repair. Extensive analyses revealed that nonload-bearing partition walls prevented the collapse of the structure by acting as compression struts and thus providing the reserve strength. The rehabilitation of the building was done at a minimum cost by making intermittent openings in existing partition walls to provide continuity in the slabs that had to be recast and by the utilization of the existing reinforcement.