Nonlinear failure analysis of a reinforced concrete containment under internal pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, S.; Wang, Y.K.; Reich, M.

1984-01-01

A detailed nonlinear finite element model is used to investigate the failure response of the Indian Point containment building under severe accident pressures. Refined material models are used to describe the complex stress-strain behavior of the liner and rebar steels, the plain concrete and the reinforced concrete. Structural geometry of the containment is idealized by eight layers of axisymmetric finite elements through the wall thickness in order to closely model the actual placement of the rebars. Soil stiffness under the containment base mat is modeled by a series of nonlinear spring elements. Numerical results presented in the paper describe cracking and plastic deformation (in compression) of the concrete, yielding of the liner and rebar steels and eventual loss of the load carrying capacity of the containment. The results are compared with available data from the previous studies for this containment. 8 references, 9 figures

Strength and deformational characteristics of three-way reinforced concrete containment models subjected to lateral forces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aoyagi, Y.; Yamada, K.; Takahashi, T.

1981-01-01

With a view to investigating the earthquake resistance characteristics of reinforced concrete containments two cylindrical models with three-way system of bars were made and loaded laterally up to failure combined with or without internal pressures, simulating the conditions in which containments were subjected to earthquake forces at a simultaneous LOCA or at normal operation. The main conclusions obtained withing the limit of the experiments are as follows. (1) Stresses in reinforcements in three-way reinforced concrete plate elements can reasonably be estimated by the equations proposed by Baumann. It is, however, necessary to take into consideration the contributions of concrete between cracks to the deformation in order to accurately estimate the average strains in the plate elements, applying such a formula as CEB as reformed by the authors. (2) The strength capacity of three-way reinforced concrete containments against lateral forces combined with internal pressure is somewhat inferior to that of orthogonally reinforced one if compared on the condition that the volumetric reinforcement ratios are the same for the two cases of reinforcement arrangements. However, three-way reinforcement improves initial shear rigidity as well as ultimate horizontal deformability for lateral forces. (3) The ability for three-way reinforced concrete containment to absorb strain energy in the range of large deformations is superior to that of orthogonally reinforced one. The equivalent viscous damping coefficient for the former is markedly larger than that for the latter, especially at the increased deformational stages. These experimental evidences suggent that three-way system of reinforcement may constitute one of the prospective measures to improve the earthquake resistance of reinforced concrete containments. (orig./HP)

Review of constitutive models and failure criteria for concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Seo, Jeong Moon; Choun, Young Sun [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejeon (Korea)

2000-03-01

The general behavior, constitutive models, and failure criteria of concrete are reviewed. The current constitutive models for concrete cannot satisfy all of mechanical behavior of concrete. Among several constitutive models, damage models are recommended to describe properly the structural behavior of concrete containment buildings, because failure modes and post-failure behavior are important in containment buildings. A constitutive model which can describe the concrete behavior in tension is required because the containment buildings will reach failure state due to ultimate internal pressure. Therefore, a thorough study on the behavior and models under tension stress state in concrete and reinforced concrete has to be performed. There are two types of failure criteria in containment buildings: structural failure criteria and leakage failure criteria. For reinforced or prestressed concrete containment buildings, concrete cracking does not mean the structural failure of containment building because the reinforcement or post-tensioning system is able to resist tensile stress up to yield stress. Therefore leakage failure criteria will be prior to structural failure criteria, and a strain failure criterion for concrete has to be established. 120 refs., 59 figs., 1 tabs. (Author)

Concrete and prestressing process, container made with this concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gerard, M.

1992-01-01

Shape memory alloy fibers or heat shrinking fibers are encapsulated in a standard concrete. Prestressed concrete is obtained by heat treatment. Application is made to the fabrication of radioactive waste containers

Posttest analysis of a 1:4-scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R.; Hessheimer, M.F.

2003-01-01

The Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) of Japan and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), Office of Nuclear Regulatory Research, co-sponsored a Cooperative Containment Research Program at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. As part of the program, a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model was subjected to a series of overpressurization tests at SNL beginning in July 2000 and culminating in a functional failure mode or Limit State Test (LST) in September 2000 and a Structural Failure Mode Test (SFMT) in November 2001. The PCCV model, uniformly scaled at 1:4, is representative of the containment structure of an actual Pressurized Water Reactor (PWR) plant (OHI-3) in Japan. The objectives of the pressurization tests were to obtain measurement of the structural response to pressure loading beyond design basis accident in order to validate analytical modeling, to find pressure capacity of the model, and to observe its failure mechanisms. This paper compares results of pretest analytical studies of the PCCV model to the PCCV high pressure test measurements and describes results of post-test analytical studies. These analyses have been performed by ANATECH Corp. under contract with Sandia National Laboratories. The post-test analysis represents the third phase of a comprehensive PCCV analysis effort. The first phase consisted of preliminary analyses to determine what finite element models would be necessary for the pretest prediction analyses, and the second phase consisted of the pretest prediction analyses. The principal objectives of the post-test analyses were: (1) to provide insights to improve the analytical methods for predicting the structural response and failure modes of a prestressed concrete containment, and (2) to evaluate by analysis any phenomena or failure mode observed during the test that had not been explicitly predicted by analysis. In addition to summarizing comparisons between measured

Ultimate internal pressure capacity of concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krishnaswamy, C.N.; Namperumal, R.; Al-Dabbagh, A.

1983-01-01

Lesson learned from the accident at Three-Mile Island nuclear plant has necessitated the computation of the ultimate internal pressure capacity of containment structures as a licensing requirement in the U.S. In general, a containment structure is designed to be essentially elastic under design accident pressure. However, as the containment pressure builds up beyond the design value due to a more severe postulated accident, the containment response turns nonlinear as it sequentially passes through cracking of concrete, yielding of linear plate, yielding of rebar, and yielding of post-tensioning tendon (if the containment concrete is prestressed). This paper reports on the determination of the ultimate internal pressure capacity and nonlinear behavior of typical reinforced and prestressed concrete BWR containments. The probable modes of failure, the criteria for ultimate pressure capacity, and the most critical sections are described. Simple equations to hand-calculate the ultimate pressure capacity and the nonlinear behavior at membrane sections of the containment shell are presented. A nonlinear finite element analysis performed to determine the nonlinear behavior of the entire shell including nonmembrane sections is briefly discribed. The analysis model consisted of laminated axisymmetric shell finite elements with nonlinear stress-strain properties for each material. Results presented for typical BWR concrete containments include nonlinear response plots of internal pressure versus containment deflection and strains in the liner, rebar, and post-tensioning tendons at the most stressed section in the shell. Leak-tightness of the containment liner and the effect of thermal loads on the ultimate capacity are discussed. (orig.)

Kinetic Hydration Heat Modeling for High-Performance Concrete Containing Limestone Powder

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xiao-Yong Wang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Limestone powder is increasingly used in producing high-performance concrete in the modern concrete industry. Limestone powder blended concrete has many advantages, such as increasing the early-age strength, reducing the setting time, improving the workability, and reducing the heat of hydration. This study presents a kinetic model for modeling the hydration heat of limestone blended concrete. First, an improved hydration model is proposed which considers the dilution effect and nucleation effect due to limestone powder addition. A degree of hydration is calculated using this improved hydration model. Second, hydration heat is calculated using the degree of hydration. The effects of water to binder ratio and limestone replacement ratio on hydration heat are clarified. Third, the temperature history and temperature distribution of hardening limestone blended concrete are calculated by combining hydration model with finite element method. The analysis results generally agree with experimental results of high-performance concrete with various mixing proportions.

Plan on test to failure of a prestressed concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takumi, K.; Nonaka, A.; Umeki, K.; Nagata, K.; Soejima, M.; Yamaura, Y.; Costello, J.F.; Riesemann, W.A. von.; Parks, M.B.; Horschel, D.S.

1992-01-01

A summary of the plans to test a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model to failure is provided in this paper. The test will be conducted as a part of a joint research program between the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), and Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). The containment model will be a scaled representation of a PCCV for a pressurized water reactor (PWR). During the test, the model will be slowly pressurized internally until failure of the containment pressure boundary occurs. The objectives of the test are to measure the failure pressure, to observe the mode of failure, and to record the containment structural response up to failure. Pre- and posttest analyses will be conducted to forecast and evaluate the test results. Based on these results, a validated method for evaluating the structural behavior of an actual PWR PCCV will be developed. The concepts to design the PCCV model are also described in the paper

Nonlinear analysis of pre-stressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) using the damage plasticity model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shokoohfar, Ahmad; Rahai, Alireza, E-mail: rahai@aut.ac.ir

2016-03-15

Highlights: • This paper describes nonlinear analyses of a 1:4 scale model of a (PCCV). • Coupled temp-disp. analysis and concrete damage plasticity are considered. • Temperature has limited effects on correct failure mode estimation. • Higher pre-stressing forces have limited effects on ultimate radial displacements. • Anchorage details of liner plates leads to prediction of correct failure mode. - Abstract: This paper describes the nonlinear analyses of a 1:4 scale model of a pre-stressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV). The analyses are performed under pressure and high temperature effects with considering anchorage details of liner plate. The temperature-time history of the model test is considered as an input boundary condition in the coupled temp-displacement analysis. The constitutive model developed by Chang and Mander (1994) is adopted in the model as the basis for the concrete stress–strain relation. To trace the crack pattern of the PCCV concrete faces, the concrete damage plasticity model is applied. This study includes the results of the thermal and mechanical behaviors of the PCCV subject to temperature loading and internal pressure at the same time. The test results are compared with the analysis results. The analysis results show that the temperature has little impact on the ultimate pressure capacity of the PCCV. To simulate the exact failure mode of the PCCV, the anchorage details of the liner plates around openings should be maintained in the analytical models. Also the failure mode of the PCCV structure hasn’t influenced by hoop tendons pre-stressing force variations.

Behaviours of reinforced concrete containment models under thermal gradient and internal pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aoyagi, Y.; Ohnuma, H.; Yoshioka, Y.; Okada, K.; Ueda, M.

1979-01-01

The provisions for design concepts in Japanese Technical Standard of Concrete Containments for Nuclear Power Plants require to take account of thermal effects into design. The provisions also propose that the thermal effects could be relieved according to the degree of crack formation and creep of concrete, and may be neglected in estimating the ultimate strength capacity in extreme environmental loading conditions. This experimental study was carried out to clarify the above provisions by investigating the crack and deformation behaviours of two identical reinforced cylindrical models with dome and basement (wall outer diameter 160 cm, and wall thickness 10 cm). One of these models was hydraulically pressurized up to failure at room temperature and the other was subjected to similar internal pressure combined with the thermal gradient of approximately 40 to 50 0 C across the wall. Initial visual cracks were recognized when the stress induced by the thermal gradient reached at about 85% of bending strength of concrete used. The thermal stress of reinforcement calculated with the methods proposed by the authors using an average flexural rigidity considering the contribution of concrete showed good agreement with test results. The method based on the fully cracked section, however, was recognized to underestimate the measured stress. These cracks considerably reduced the initial deformation caused by subsequent internal pressure. (orig.)

Ageing management of CANDUtm concrete containment buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Philipose, K.E.; Gregor, F.E.

2009-01-01

The containment system in a Nuclear Power Plant (NPP) provides the final physical barrier against release of radioactive materials to the external environment. Even though there are different physical configurations to meet this fundamental safety function in various reactor types, a common feature is the use of a thick-walled concrete structure as part of the containment system commonly referred to as 'Concrete Containment Building'. In order for the concrete containment buildings to continue to provide the required safety function, it has to maintain its structural integrity. As well, its leak rates under test pressures must be maintained below acceptable limits. As some of the containment buildings of the CANDU nuclear power plants are approaching their fourth decade of successful operation, questions regarding the impact of ageing on their ultimate useful service life emerge. Ageing Management has become the tool for addressing those questions. In this paper, the ageing and ageing management of the CANDU concrete containments are discussed, including the specific programs being implemented to monitor and trend the ageing conditions. Specifically, the usefulness of the embedded strain gauges as a tool for the assessment of the condition of the containment concrete structure is discussed. Some of the operational and test data accumulated over the last 30 years have been evaluated and trended to provide some results and conclusions regarding the satisfactory long-term behaviour of the concrete containment buildings. (authors)

Serviceability design load factors and reliability assessments for reinforced concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han Bong Koo

1998-01-01

A reinforced concrete nuclear power plant containment structure is subjected to various random static and stochastic loads during its lifetime. Since these loads involve inherent randomness and other uncertainties, an appropriate probabilistic model for each load must be established in order to perform reliability analysis. The current ASME code for reinforced concrete containment structures are not based on probability concepts. The stochastic nature of natural hazard or accidental loads and the variations of material properties require a probabilistic approach for a rational assessment of structural safety and performance. The paper develops probability-based load factors for the limit state design of reinforced concrete containment structures. The purpose of constructing reinforced concrete containment structure is to protect against radioactive release, and so the use of a serviceability limit state against crack failure that can cause the emission of radioactive materials is suggested as a critical limit state for reinforced concrete containment structures. Load factors for the design of reinforced concrete containment structures are proposed and carried out the reliability assessments. (orig.)

A method for three-dimensional structural analysis of reinforced concrete containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kulak, R.F.; Fiala, C.

1989-01-01

A finite element method designed to assist reactor safety analysts in the three-dimensional numerical simulation of reinforced concrete containments to normal and off-normal mechanical loadings is presented. The development of a lined reinforced concrete plate element is described in detail, and the implementation of an empirical transverse shear failure criteria is discussed. The method is applied to the analysis of a 1/6th scale reinforced concrete containment model subjected to static internal pressurization. 11 refs., 14 figs., 1 tab

Properties of concrete containing foamed concrete block waste as fine aggregate replacement

Science.gov (United States)

Muthusamy, K.; Budiea, A. M. A.; Zaidan, A. L. F.; Rasid, M. H.; Hazimmah, D. S.

2017-11-01

Environmental degradation due to excessive sand mining dumping at certain places and disposal of foamed concrete block waste from lightweight concrete producing industry are issues that should be resolved for a better and cleaner environment of the community. Thus, the main intention of this study is to investigate the potential of foamed concrete block waste as partial sand replacement in concrete production. The foamed concrete waste (FCW) used in this research that were supplied by a local lightweight concrete producing industry. The workability and compressive strength of concrete containing various percentage of foamed concrete waste as partial sand replacement has been investigated. Prior to the use, the foamed concrete waste were crushed to produce finer particles. Six concrete mixes containing various content of crushed foamed concrete waste that are 0%, 10%, 20%, 30%, 40% and 50% were used in this experimental work. Then the prepared specimens were placed in water curing until the testing age. Compressive strength test and flexural strength tests were conducted at 7, 14 and 28 days. The result shows that integration of crushed foamed concrete waste as partial sand replacement in concrete reduces the mix workability. It is interesting to note that both compressive strength and flexural strength of concrete improves when 30% crushed foamed concrete waste is added as partial sand replacement.

Transient analysis of LMFBR reinforced/prestressed concrete containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marchertas, A.H.; Belytschko, T.B.; Bazant, Z.P.

1979-01-01

The use of prestressed concrete reactor vessels (PCRVs) for LMFBR containment creates a need for analytical methods for treating the transient response of such structures, for LMFBR containments must be capable of sustaining the dynamic effects which arise in a hypothetical core disruptive accident (HCDA). These analyses require several unique features: a model of concrete which includes tensile cracking, a methodology for representing the prestressing tendons and for simulating the prestressing operation, and an efficient computational tool for treating the transient response. Furthermore, for the sake of convenience, all of these features should be available in a single computer code. For the purpose of treating the transient response, a finite element program with explicit time integration was chosen. The use of explicit time integration has the advantage that it can easily treat the complicated constitutive model which arises from the considerations of concrete cracking and it can handle the slip between reinforcing tendons and the concrete through the use of the well known sliding interface options. However, explicit time integration programs are usually not well suited to the simulation of static processes such as prestressing. Nevertheless, explicit time integration programs can handle static processes through the introduction of damping by what is known as a dynamic relaxation procedure. For this reason, the dynamic relaxation procedure was refined through the introduction of lumped mass, viscous damping. This provision made the prestressing operation of the concrete structures by means of the explicit formulation rather convenient. (orig.)

Design and construction of a large reinforced concrete containment model to be tested to failure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ucciferro, J.J.; Horschel, D.S.

1987-01-01

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission is investigating the performance of LWR containments subjected to severe accidents. This work is being performed by the Containment Integrity Division at Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia). The latest research effort involves the testing of a 1/6-scale reinforced concrete containment model. The containment, which was designed and constructed by United Engineers and Constructors, is the largest and most complex model of its kind. The design and construction of the containment model are the subject of this paper. The objective of the containment model tests is to generate data that can be used to qualify methods for reliably predicting the response of LWR containment buildings to severe accident loads. The data recorded during testing include deformations and leakage past sealing surfaces, as well as strains and displacements of the containment shell

Pre-test analysis results of a PWR steel lined pre-stressed concrete containment model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Ghosh, Barnali; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Singh, R.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2000-02-01

Pre-stressed concrete nuclear containment serves as the ultimate barrier against the release of radioactivity to the environment. This ultimate barrier must be checked for its ultimate load carrying capacity. BARC participated in a Round Robin analysis activity which is co-sponsored by Sandia National Laboratory, USA and Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation Japan for the pre-test prediction of a 1:4 size Pre-stressed Concrete Containment Vessel. In house finite element code ULCA was used to make the test predictions of displacements and strains at the standard output locations. The present report focuses on the important landmarks of the pre-test results, in sequential terms of first crack appearance, loss of pre-stress, first through thickness crack, rebar and liner yielding and finally liner tearing at the ultimate load. Global and local failure modes of the containment have been obtained from the analysis. Finally sensitivity of the numerical results with respect to different types of liners and different constitutive models in terms of bond strength between concrete and steel and tension-stiffening parameters are examined. The report highlights the important features which could be observed during the test and guidelines are given for improving the prediction in the post test computation after the test data is available. (author)

Prediction of Splitting Tensile Strength of Concrete Containing Zeolite and Diatomite by ANN

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. Gülbandılar

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This study was designed to investigate with two different artificial neural network (ANN prediction model for the behavior of concrete containing zeolite and diatomite. For purpose of constructing this model, 7 different mixes with 63 specimens of the 28, 56 and 90 days splitting tensile strength experimental results of concrete containing zeolite, diatomite, both zeolite and diatomite used in training and testing for ANN systems was gathered from the tests. The data used in the ANN models are arranged in a format of seven input parameters that cover the age of samples, Portland cement, zeolite, diatomite, aggregate, water and hyper plasticizer and an output parameter which is splitting tensile strength of concrete. In the model, the training and testing results have shown that two different ANN systems have strong potential as a feasible tool for predicting 28, 56 and 90 days the splitting tensile strength of concrete containing zeolite and diatomite.

Properties of Pervious Concrete Containing Scrap Tyre Tubes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Boon Koh Heng

2017-01-01

Full Text Available There is a huge quantity of waste tyre tubes generated every year due to the increasing of motorcycle user. Therefore, recycling of the waste tyre tubes is become mandatory. The aim of this research was to study the properties of pervious concrete containing scrap tyre tube (STT rubber particles with percentages of 3%, 5% and 7% of the cement content. The properties studied are void content, compressive strength measured at 7, 14 and 28 days, flexural strength and flow rate which were determined at 28 day. The experimental results showed that, there were increased in void content and flow rate of pervious concrete containing STT. Both compressive strength and flexural strength of pervious concrete containing STT showed a lower value compared to the control mix without STT. The reductions of the mechanical strengths are likely due to the increase of void content. Overall, pervious concrete which contains 7% STT has shown an increment of mechanical strengths and flow rate compared to other STT pervious concrete. Nonetheless, the results indicate that there are potentials for use of STT in pervious concrete, especially for use in pervious concrete applications such as pavements, driveways and parking lots.

Analytical capability for predicting structural response of NPP concrete containments to severe loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Planas, J.; Guinea, G.; Trbojevic, V.M.; Marti, J.; Martinez, F.; Cortes, P.

1989-12-01

A survey has been conducted on the state-of-the-art of analytical techniques for predicting the structural response of concrete containment buildings under severe accident conditions. The validity of inelastic analysis is often limited by the inadequacy of the material models adopted. This is specially true in the case of materials which undergo localization phenomena in the course of the deformation process. Because of this, the Joint Research Centre at Ispra has given a high priority to the review of existing constitutive models for concrete. Such models must be able to describe concrete behaviour with and without steel reinforcement across the complete stress range, from initial elastic behaviour to and beyond the point of failure. For reinforced and prestressed concrete, segregated models (where concrete and steel are independently simulated) are preferred. A review of existing constitutive models for mass concrete has been conducted. The review focused on necessary features for describing the near-peak and post-peak stages of deformation. Special attention was dedicated to the localization of strains in tension and the post-peak softening behaviour. Existing models for representing the concrete steel bond were also reviewed. These models are still relatively simplistic and incorporate seldom a number of effects of considerable importance: sustained, dynamic and cyclic loading, environmental effects, etc. Finally, the computational procedures currently available for modelling problems involving the ultimate capacity of concrete containments have also been reviewed. This includes methodologies for modelling amongst other mass concrete, cracking procedures, bond behaviour, in existing computer codes

Axisymmetric analysis of a 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment building using a distributed cracking model for the concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weatherby, J.R.

1987-09-01

Results of axisymmetric structural analyses of a 1:6 scale model of a reinforced concrete nuclear containment building are presented. Both a finite element shell analysis and a simplified membrane analysis were made to predict the structural response and ultimate pressure capacity of the model. Analytical results indicate that the model will fail at an internal pressure of 187 psig when the stress level in the hoop reinforcement at the midsection of the cylinder exceeds the ultimate strength of the bar splices. 5 refs., 34 figs., 6 tabs

Ultimate analysis of PWR prestressed concrete containment subjected to internal pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hu, H.-T.; Lin, Y.-H.

2006-01-01

Numerical analyses are carried out by using the ABAQUS finite element program to predict the ultimate pressure capacity and the failure mode of the PWR prestressed concrete containment at Maanshan nuclear power plant. Material nonlinearity such as concrete cracking, tension stiffening, shear retention, concrete plasticity, yielding of prestressing tendon, yielding of steel reinforcing bar and degradation of material properties due to high temperature are all simulated with proper constitutive models. Geometric nonlinearity due to finite deformation has also been considered. The results of the analysis show that when the prestressed concrete containment fails, extensive cracks take place at the apex of the dome, the junction of the dome and cylinder, and the bottom of the cylinder connecting to the base slab. In addition, the ultimate pressure capacity of the containment is higher than the design pressure by 86%

CONCRETE REACTOR CONTAINMENT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lumb, Ralph F.; Hall, William F.; Fruchtbaum, Jacob

1963-06-15

The results of various leak-rate tests demonstrate the practicality of concrete as primary containment for the maximum credible accident for a research reactor employing plate-type fuel and having a power in excess of one megawatt. Leak-test time was shortened substantially by measuring the relaxation time for overpressure decay, which is a function of leak rate. (auth)

Development of finite element models for the study of ageing effects in CANDU 6 concrete containment buildings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ding, Y.; Jaffer, S., E-mail: Yuqing.Ding@cnl.ca [Canadian Nuclear Laboratories, Chalk River, Ontario (Canada)

2016-06-15

In nuclear power plants (NPPs), concrete containment buildings (CCBs) provide the final physical barrier against the release of radioactive materials into the environment and protect the nuclear structures housed within the containment building. CCBs have to be maintained to ensure leak tightness and sound structural integrity for the safe operation throughout the life of NPPs. However, the integrity of CCBs may be affected by the ageing of its concrete, post-tensioning cables and reinforcing bars (rebars). Finite element models (FEMs) of CANDU 6 CCBs have been developed using 2 independent finite element programs for the study of the effect of ageing of CCBs. These FEMs have been validated using multiple-source data and have been used for preliminary analyses of the effect of thermal load and ageing degradation on the concrete structure. The modelling assumptions and simplifications, approach, and validation are discussed in this paper. The preliminary analyses for temperature effects and potential applications to the study of ageing degradation in CCBs using the FEMs are briefly introduced. (author)

Prestressed and reinforced concrete containments. Analysis - design - construction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schnellenbach, G.

1975-01-01

Nuclear reactors performing in the German Federal Republic to date were supplied with steel containments. The first reinforced concrete and prestressed concrete containments, respectively, are going to be used for the nuclear power plants Kalkar and Gundremmingen (KRB II) as well as for the HTR plant. Because of their function and nature of loading these structures, similarly to the prestressed concrete reactor pressure vessels, belong to the special structures of civil engineering. Yet, they are substantially different from the prestressed concrete reactor pressure vessels. The problems connected with analysis, design, and construction of these structures are new as well. (orig.) [de

Ultimate internal pressure capacity of a reinforced concrete Mark III containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

McGaughy, J.P. Jr.; Lin, F.T.; Sen, S.K.

1983-01-01

The static ultimate capacity of a Mark III BWR pressure suppression type containment has been investigated with a view to determine its capability to withstand the internal pressure associated with a postulated hydrogen burn. The reinforced concrete containment consists of a right circular cylinder covered by a hemispherical dome and supported on a flat circular foundation mat. A 1/4'' thick welded steel liner plate covers the inside surface of the containment shell. The cylinder is a 3.5 ft. thick shell with an inside radius of 62.0 feet. The thickness of the dome is 3.5 feet. Reinforcement in the shell is comprised of multi-layers of circumferential, meridional and diagonal rebars. Major containment penetrations consists of a circular equipment hatch and two personnel airlock assemblies. The containment ultimate capacity is determined by performing a non-linear analysis using the proprietary finite element computer code 'FINEL'. The code has the capability of modelling concrete cracking in tension and redistribution forces and moments to account for such phenomenon. For analysis purposes, the finite element model included the containment dome and the upper portion of the containment cylinder with appropriate boundary conditions applied at the model cut off region. This portion of the containment structure is selected because the segment of the cylinder that is included in the model has the least amount of hopp reinforcement, and when the general yield state is reached, the hoop reinforcement will be the limiting element. The containment structure has been treated as an axisymmetric shell using axisymmetric quadrilateral finite elements in the radial plane to model the liner plate and concrete. The reinforcing steel have been idealized by finite elements with unidirectional stiffness. (orig./RW)

Tension tests of concrete containment wall elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schultz, D.M.; Julien, J.T.; Russel, H.G.

1984-01-01

Tension tests of concrete containment wall elements were conducted as part of a three-phase research program sponsored by the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI). The objective of the EPRI experimental/analytical program is twofold. The first objective is to provide the utility industry with a test-verified analytical method for making realistic estimates of actual capacities of reinforced and prestressed concrete containments under internal over-pressurization from postulated degraded core accidents. The second objective is to determine qualitative and quantitative leak rate characteristics of typical containment cross-sections with and without penetrations. This paper covers the experimental portion to the EPRI program. The testing program for Phase 1 included eight large-scale specimens representing elements from the wall of a containment. Each specimen was 60-in (1525-mm) square, 24-in (610-mm) thick, and had full-size reinforcing bars. Six specimens were representative of prototypical reinforced concrete containment designs. The remaining two specimens represented prototypical prestressed containment designs. Various reinforcement configurations and loading arrangements resulted in data that permit comparisons of the effects of controlled variables on cracking and subsequent concrete/reinforcement/liner interaction in containment elements. Subtle differences, due to variations in reinforcement patterns and load applications among the eight specimens, are being used to benchmark the codes being developed in the analytical portion of the EPRI program. Phases 2 and 3 of the test program will examine leak rate characteristics and failure mechanisms at penetrations and structural discontinuities. (orig.)

Radon emanation fractions from concretes containing fly ash and metakaolin.

Science.gov (United States)

Taylor-Lange, Sarah C; Juenger, Maria C G; Siegel, Jeffrey A

2014-01-01

Radon ((222)Rn) and progenies emanate from soil and building components and can create an indoor air quality hazard. In this study, nine concrete constituents, including the supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) fly ash and metakaolin, were used to create eleven different concrete mixtures. We investigated the effect of constituent radium specific activity, radon effective activity and emanation fraction on the concrete emanation fraction and the radon exhalation rate. Given the serious health effects associated with radionuclide exposure, experimental results were coupled with Monte Carlo simulations to demonstrate predictive differences in the indoor radon concentration due to concrete mixture design. The results from this study show that, on average, fly ash constituents possessed radium specific activities ranging from 100 Bq/kg to 200 Bq/kg and emanation fractions ranging from 1.1% to 2.5%. The lowest emitting concrete mixture containing fly ash resulted in a 3.4% reduction in the concrete emanation fraction, owing to the relatively low emanation that exists when fly ash is part of concrete. On average, the metakaolin constituents contained radium specific activities ranging from 67 Bq/kg to 600 Bq/kg and emanation fractions ranging from 8.4% to 15.5%, and changed the total concrete emanation fraction by roughly ±5% relative to control samples. The results from this study suggest that SCMs can reduce indoor radon exposure from concrete, contingent upon SCM radionucleotide content and emanation fraction. Lastly, the experimental results provide SCM-specific concrete emanation fractions for indoor radon exposure modeling. © 2013.

Roles of concrete technology for containment of radioactive contaminants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kitsutaka, Yoshinori; Imamoto, Keiichi

2014-01-01

A large amount of radioactive materials was emitted in the environment by the reactor accident at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. Nuclear debris still remains in the reactor container. An investigative committee was organized in Japan Concrete Institute to study on the containment of radioactive materials and the safe utilization of concrete materials. We have investigated the effect of the hydrogen explosion upon the property of concrete and the transfer of materials into the concrete. We also present the outline of the advice made by Japan Concrete Institute about technologies on the concrete materials for the waterproofing in buildings and for water-shielding walls. (J.P.N.)

Radon emanation fractions from concretes containing fly ash and metakaolin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Taylor-Lange, Sarah C.; Juenger, Maria C.G.; Siegel, Jeffrey A.

2014-01-01

Radon ( 222 Rn) and progenies emanate from soil and building components and can create an indoor air quality hazard. In this study, nine concrete constituents, including the supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs) fly ash and metakaolin, were used to create eleven different concrete mixtures. We investigated the effect of constituent radium specific activity, radon effective activity and emanation fraction on the concrete emanation fraction and the radon exhalation rate. Given the serious health effects associated with radionuclide exposure, experimental results were coupled with Monte Carlo simulations to demonstrate predictive differences in the indoor radon concentration due to concrete mixture design. The results from this study show that, on average, fly ash constituents possessed radium specific activities ranging from 100 Bq/kg to 200 Bq/kg and emanation fractions ranging from 1.1% to 2.5%. The lowest emitting concrete mixture containing fly ash resulted in a 3.4% reduction in the concrete emanation fraction, owing to the relatively low emanation that exists when fly ash is part of concrete. On average, the metakaolin constituents contained radium specific activities ranging from 67 Bq/kg to 600 Bq/kg and emanation fractions ranging from 8.4% to 15.5%, and changed the total concrete emanation fraction by roughly ± 5% relative to control samples. The results from this study suggest that SCMs can reduce indoor radon exposure from concrete, contingent upon SCM radionucleotide content and emanation fraction. Lastly, the experimental results provide SCM-specific concrete emanation fractions for indoor radon exposure modeling. - Highlights: • Fly ash or metakaolin SCMs can neutralize or reduce concrete emanation fractions. • The specific activity of constituents is a poor predictor of the concrete emanation fraction. • Exhalation from fly ash concretes represents a small fraction of the total indoor radon concentration

Analytical predictions for the performance of a reinforced concrete containment model subject to overpressurization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Weatherby, J.R.; Clauss, D.B.

1987-01-01

Under the sponsorship of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Sandia National Laboratories is investigating methods for predicting the structural performance of nuclear reactor containment buildings under hypothesized severe accident conditions. As part of this program, a 1/6th-scale reinforced concrete containment model will be pressurized to failure in early 1987. Data generated by the test will be compared to analytical predictions of the structural response in order to assess the accuracy and reliability of the analytical techniques. As part of the pretest analysis effort, Sandia has conducted a number of analyses of the containment structure using the ABAQUS general purpose finite element code. This paper describes results from a nonlinear axisymmetric shell analysis as well as the material models and failure criteria used in conjunction with the analysis

Concept study for a combined reinforced concrete containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liersch, G.; Peter, U.; Danisch, R.; Freiman, M.; Hummer, M.; Roettinger, H.; Hansen, H.

1994-01-01

A variety of different steel and concrete containment types had been designed and constructed in the past. Most of the concrete containments had been prestressed offering the advantage of small displacements and certain leak tightness of the concrete itself. However, considerable stresses in concrete as well as in the tendons have to be maintained during the whole lifetime of the plant in order to guarantee the required prestressing. The long-time behaviour and the ductility in case of beyond design load cases must be verified. In contrary to a prestressed containment a reinforced containment will only significantly be loaded during test conditions or when needed in case of accidents. It offers additional margins which can be used especially for dynamic loads like impacts or for beyond design considerations. The aim of this paper is to show the feasibility of a so-called combined containment which means capable to resist both - severe internal accidents and external hazards mainly the aircraft crash impact as considered in the design of nuclear power plants in Germany. The concept is a lined reinforced containment without prestressing. The mechanical resistance function is provided by the reinforced concrete and the leak tightness function will be taken by a so called composite liner made of non-metallic materials. Some results of tests performed at SIEMENS laboratories and at the University of Karlsruhe which show the capability of a composite liner to bridge over cracks at the concrete surface will be presented in the paper. The study shows that the combined reinforced concrete containment with a composite liner offers a robust concept with high flexibility with respect to load requirements, beyond design considerations and geometrical shaping (arrangement of openings, integration with adjacent structures). The concept may be further optimized by partial prestressing at areas of high concentration of stresses such as at transition zones or at disturbances around

Mechanical properties of concrete containing recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) and ceramic waste as coarse aggregate replacement

Science.gov (United States)

Khalid, Faisal Sheikh; Azmi, Nurul Bazilah; Sumandi, Khairul Azwa Syafiq Mohd; Mazenan, Puteri Natasya

2017-10-01

Many construction and development activities today consume large amounts of concrete. The amount of construction waste is also increasing because of the demolition process. Much of this waste can be recycled to produce new products and increase the sustainability of construction projects. As recyclable construction wastes, concrete and ceramic can replace the natural aggregate in concrete because of their hard and strong physical properties. This research used 25%, 35%, and 45% recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) and ceramic waste as coarse aggregate in producing concrete. Several tests, such as concrete cube compression and splitting tensile tests, were also performed to determine and compare the mechanical properties of the recycled concrete with those of the normal concrete that contains 100% natural aggregate. The concrete containing 35% RCA and 35% ceramic waste showed the best properties compared with the normal concrete.

Structural optimization of reinforced concrete container for radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tamura, M.

1984-01-01

A structural optimization study of reinforced concrete container for transportation and disposal of the low level radioactive waste generated in Brazilian nuclear power plants. The code requires the structural integrity of these containers when subjected to fall from specified height, avoiding environmental contamination. The structural optimization allows material and transportation cost reduction by container wall thickness reduction. The structural analysis is performed by tridimensional mathematical model using finite element method. (Author) [pt

Seismic analysis of a reinforced concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Randy, James J.; Cherry, Jeffery L.; Rashid, Yusef R.; Chokshi, Nilesh

2000-01-01

Pre-and post-test analytical predictions of the dynamic behavior of a 1:10 scale model Reinforced Concrete Containment Vessel are presented. This model, designed and constructed by the Nuclear Power Engineering Corp., was subjected to seismic simulation tests using the high-performance shaking table at the Tadotsu Engineering Laboratory in Japan. A group of tests representing design-level and beyond-design-level ground motions were first conducted to verify design safety margins. These were followed by a series of tests in which progressively larger base motions were applied until structural failure was induced. The analysis was performed by ANATECH Corp. and Sandia National Laboratories for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission, employing state-of-the-art finite-element software specifically developed for concrete structures. Three-dimensional time-history analyses were performed, first as pre-test blind predictions to evaluate the general capabilities of the analytical methods, and second as post-test validation of the methods and interpretation of the test result. The input data consisted of acceleration time histories for the horizontal, vertical and rotational (rocking) components, as measured by accelerometers mounted on the structure's basemat. The response data consisted of acceleration and displacement records for various points on the structure, as well as time-history records of strain gages mounted on the reinforcement. This paper reports on work in progress and presents pre-test predictions and post-test comparisons to measured data for tests simulating maximum design basis and extreme design basis earthquakes. The pre-test analyses predict the failure earthquake of the test structure to have an energy level in the range of four to five times the energy level of the safe shutdown earthquake. The post-test calculations completed so far show good agreement with measured data

Influence of Silicon-Containing Additives on Concrete Waterproofness Property

Science.gov (United States)

Butakova, M. D.; Saribekyan, S. S.; Mikhaylov, A. V.

2017-11-01

The article studies the influence of silicon-containing additives on the property of the water resistance of concrete samples. It provides a review of the literature on common approaches and technologies improving concrete waterproofness and reinforced concrete structures. Normal hardening samples were obtained on the basis of concretes containing microsilica, aerosil or ash, or the combinations thereof. This research is aimed at the study of the complex modifier effect r on the basis of metakaolin, superplasticizer and silicon containing additives on the property of concrete water resistance. The need to use a superplasticizer to reduce the water-cement ratio and metakaolin as a hardening accelerator along with the set of strength is substantiated. This article describes a part of the results of the experiment conducted to find alternative options for colmatizing expensive additives used in the concreting foundations of private house-building. The implementation of the scientific work will not only clarify this area but will also broaden the knowledge of such additive as aerosol.

Design and analysis of reactor containment of steel-concrete composite laminated shell

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ichikawa, K.

1977-01-01

Reinforced and prestressed concrete containments for reactors have been developed in order to avoid the difficulties of welding of steel containments encountered as their capacities have become large: growing thickness of steel shells gave rise to the requirement of stress relief at the construction sites. However, these concrete vessels also seem to face another difficulty: the lack of shearing resistance capacity. In order to improve the shearing resistance capacity of the containment vessel, while avoiding the difficulty of welding, a new scheme of containment consisting of steel-concrete laminated shell is being developed. In the main part of a cylindrical vessel, the shell consists of two layers of thin steel plates located at the inner and outer surfaces, and a layer of concrete core into which both the steel plates are anchored. In order to validate the feasibility and safety of this new design, the results of analysis on the basis of up-to-date design loads are presented. The results of model tests in 1:30 scale are also reported. (Auth.)

Three dimensional non-linear cracking analysis of prestressed concrete containment vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Al-Obaid, Y.F.

2001-01-01

The paper gives full development of three-dimensional cracking matrices. These matrices are simulated in three-dimensional non-linear finite element analysis adopted for concrete containment vessels. The analysis includes a combination of conventional steel, the steel line r and prestressing tendons and the anisotropic stress-relations for concrete and concrete aggregate interlocking. The analysis is then extended and is linked to cracking analysis within the global finite element program OBAID. The analytical results compare well with those available from a model test. (author)

Optimization and influence of parameter affecting the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete containing recycled concrete aggregate: using full factorial design approach

Science.gov (United States)

Krishnan, Thulasirajan; Purushothaman, Revathi

2017-07-01

There are several parameters that influence the properties of geopolymer concrete, which contains recycled concrete aggregate as the coarse aggregate. In the present study, the vital parameters affecting the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete containing recycled concrete aggregate are analyzedby varying four parameters with two levels using full factorial design in statistical software Minitab® 17. The objective of the present work is to gain an idea on the optimization, main parameter effects, their interactions and the predicted response of the model generated using factorial design. The parameters such as molarity of sodium hydroxide (8M and 12M), curing time (6hrs and 24 hrs), curing temperature (60°C and 90°C) and percentage of recycled concrete aggregate (0% and 100%) are considered. The results show that the curing time, molarity of sodium hydroxide and curing temperature were the orderly significant parameters and the percentage of Recycled concrete aggregate (RCA) was statistically insignificant in the production of geopolymer concrete. Thus, it may be noticeable that the RCA content had negligible effect on the compressive strength of geopolymer concrete. The expected responses from the generated model showed a satisfactory and rational agreement to the experimental data with the R2 value of 97.70%. Thus, geopolymer concrete comprising recycled concrete aggregate can solve the major social and environmental concerns such as the depletion of the naturally available aggregate sources and disposal of construction and demolition waste into the landfill.

Optimisation by mathematical modeling of physicochemical characteristics of concrete containers in radioactive waste management

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Plećaš Ilija

2013-01-01

Full Text Available A method for obtaining an optimal concrete container composition used for storing radioactive waste from nuclear power plants is developed. It is applied to the radionuclides 60Co, 137Cs, 85Sr, and 54Mn. A set of recipes for concrete composition leading to an optimal solution is given.

Development of polymer concrete radioactive waste management containers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chung, H.; Lee, M. S.; Ahn, D. H.; Won, H. J.; Kang, H. S.; Lee, H. S.; Lim, S.P.; Kim, Y. E.; Lee, B. O.; Lee, K. P.; Min, B. Y.; Lee, J.K.; Jang, W. S.; Sim, W. B.; Lee, J. C.; Park, M. J.; Choi, Y. J.; Shin, H. E.; Park, H. Y.; Kim, C. Y

1999-11-01

A high-integrity radioactive waste container has been developed to immobilize the spent resin wastes from nuclear power plants, protect possible future, inadvertent intruders from damaging radiation. The polymer concrete container is designed to ensure safe and reliable disposal of the radioactive waste for a minimum period of 300 years. A built-in vent system for each container will permit the release of gas. An experimental evaluation of the mechanical, chemical, and biological tests of the container was carried out. The tests showed that the polymer concrete container is adequate for safe disposal of the radioactive wastes. (author)

Long-term behaviour of concrete: development of operational model to predict the evolution of its containment performance. Application to cemented waste packages

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Peycelon, H.; Le Bescop, P.; Richet, C.; Adenot, F.

2001-01-01

In order to describe the main phenomena during different stages of cement waste packages life-time and to predict the long-term behaviour (containment performance) of concrete, coupled experiments and modelling studies are achieved. With respect to logical methodology, improvement of these studies is accomplished. Degradation of concrete in low mineralized, carbonated and sulfated water lead to an evolution of chemical characteristics (dissolution/precipitation of solid phases) and of transport properties which must be included or coupled in retention/transport modelling of radio nuclides to predict containment performance. (author)

Determining prestressing forces for inspection of prestressed concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1990-07-01

General Design Criterion 53, ''Provisions for Containment Testing and Inspection,'' of Appendix A, ''General Design Criteria for Nuclear Power Plants,'' to 10 CFR Part 50, ''Domestic Licensing of Production and Utilization Facilities,'' requires, in part, that the reactor containment be designed to permit (1) periodic inspection of all important areas and (2) an appropriate surveillance program. Regulatory Guide 1.35, ''Inservice Inspection of Ungrouted Tendons in Prestressed Concrete Containment Structures,'' describes a basis acceptable to the NRC staff for developing an appropriate inservice inspection and surveillance program for ungrouted tendons in prestressed concrete containment structures of light-water-cooled reactors. This guide expands and clarifies the NRC staff position on determining prestressing forces to be used for inservice inspections of prestressed concrete containment structures

PARCS - A pre-stressed and reinforced concrete shell element for analysis of containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buragohain, D.N.; Mukherjee, A.

1993-01-01

Containment structures are designed as pressure vessels against a huge internal pressure build up in the event of a postulated LOCA. In such situations the containment structures experience predominantly in-plane stress in tension. Therefore, pre-stressed concrete has been very frequently used for the construction of containment. For larger plants a dual containment with a pre-stressed concrete inner containment and a reinforced concrete outer containment has been adopted. These structures are required to perform within very stringent safety requirements under extremely severe loading. Naturally, their design has attracted a lot of investigators and a huge volume of literature has been published in previous SMiRT conferences. However, it seems that the structural modeling of the containment has not developed accordingly. It is a common practice to consider the concrete section only in the model and the effects of pre-stress and reinforcements are usually neglected. This is due to the difficulty in including these effects without generating an unduly large model. To include these effects using the existing software, the concrete can be modeled with 3D elements. The reinforcements can be included in the model as bar or cable elements. However, that would require a nodal line along every reinforcement. Therefore, this method would generate a huge model unmanageable even with modern computing facilities. Alternatively, the reinforcements can be assumed to be smeared uniformly within the structure and an average property can be included. This model is acceptable when the reinforcements are very closely spaced. However, for sparsely spaced reinforcements it would result in loss of accuracy, especially in important areas like the vicinity of large openings. In this paper a shell element for the analysis of pre-stressed and reinforced concrete structures has been proposed which alleviates this difficulty. This element can accommodate the reinforcing bars or cables anywhere

Review of constructive models for concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiaoping, Y.; Ottosen, N.S.; Thelandersson, S.; Nielsen, M.P.

1989-11-01

This report has been prepared for the Commission of the European Communities, Joint Research Centre, ISPRA. The report reviews the constitutive models for concrete and is a part of a survey of the status of the analytical capabilities for predicting the structural response of NPP concrete containment buildings to severe loading conditions

Evaluation of seismic shear capacity of prestressed concrete containment vessels with fiber reinforcement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choun, Young Sun; Park, Jun Hee [Integrated Safety Assessment Division, Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-10-15

Fibers have been used in cement mixture to improve its toughness, ductility, and tensile strength, and to enhance the cracking and deformation characteristics of concrete structural members. The addition of fibers into conventional reinforced concrete can enhance the structural and functional performances of safety-related concrete structures in nuclear power plants. The effects of steel and polyamide fibers on the shear resisting capacity of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) were investigated in this study. For a comparative evaluation between the shear performances of structural walls constructed with conventional concrete, steel fiber reinforced concrete, and polyamide fiber reinforced concrete, cyclic tests for wall specimens were conducted and hysteretic models were derived. The shear resisting capacity of a PCCV constructed with fiber reinforced concrete can be improved considerably. When steel fiber reinforced concrete contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%, the maximum lateral displacement of a PCCV can be improved by > 50%, in comparison with that of a conventional PCCV. When polyamide fiber reinforced concrete contains polyamide fibers in a volume fraction of 1.5%, the maximum lateral displacement of a PCCV can be enhanced by ∼40%. In particular, the energy dissipation capacity in a fiber reinforced PCCV can be enhanced by > 200%. The addition of fibers into conventional concrete increases the ductility and energy dissipation of wall structures significantly. Fibers can be effectively used to improve the structural performance of a PCCV subjected to strong ground motions. Steel fibers are more effective in enhancing the shear performance of a PCCV than polyamide fibers.

Evaluation of seismic shear capacity of prestressed concrete containment vessels with fiber reinforcement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Young Sun; Park, Jun Hee

2015-01-01

Fibers have been used in cement mixture to improve its toughness, ductility, and tensile strength, and to enhance the cracking and deformation characteristics of concrete structural members. The addition of fibers into conventional reinforced concrete can enhance the structural and functional performances of safety-related concrete structures in nuclear power plants. The effects of steel and polyamide fibers on the shear resisting capacity of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) were investigated in this study. For a comparative evaluation between the shear performances of structural walls constructed with conventional concrete, steel fiber reinforced concrete, and polyamide fiber reinforced concrete, cyclic tests for wall specimens were conducted and hysteretic models were derived. The shear resisting capacity of a PCCV constructed with fiber reinforced concrete can be improved considerably. When steel fiber reinforced concrete contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%, the maximum lateral displacement of a PCCV can be improved by > 50%, in comparison with that of a conventional PCCV. When polyamide fiber reinforced concrete contains polyamide fibers in a volume fraction of 1.5%, the maximum lateral displacement of a PCCV can be enhanced by ∼40%. In particular, the energy dissipation capacity in a fiber reinforced PCCV can be enhanced by > 200%. The addition of fibers into conventional concrete increases the ductility and energy dissipation of wall structures significantly. Fibers can be effectively used to improve the structural performance of a PCCV subjected to strong ground motions. Steel fibers are more effective in enhancing the shear performance of a PCCV than polyamide fibers

NOx photocatalytic degradation employing concrete pavement containing titanium dioxide

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ballari, M.M.; Hunger, Martin; Hüsken, Götz; Brouwers, Jos

2010-01-01

In the present work the degradation of nitrogen oxides (NOx) by concrete paving stones containing TiO2 to be applied in road construction is studied. A kinetic model is proposed to describe the photocatalytic reaction of NOx (combining the degradation of NO and the appearance and disappearance of

Reinforced concrete containment structures in high seismic zones

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aziz, T.S.

1977-01-01

A new structural concept for reinforced concrete containment structures at sites where earthquake ground motions in terms of the Safe Shutdown Earthquake (SSE) exceeds 0.3 g is presented. The structural concept is based on: (1) an inner steel-lined concrete shell which houses the reactor and provides shielding and containment in the event of loss of coolant accident; (2) an outer annular concrete shell structure which houses auxiliary reactor equipment and safeguards systems. These shell structures are supported on a common foundation mat which is embedded in the subgrade. Under stipulated earthquake conditions the two shell structures interact to resist lateral inertia forces. Thus the annular structure which is not a pressure boundary acts as a lateral support for the inner containment shell. The concept is practical, economically feasible and new to practice. (Auth.)

Behaviour of concrete containment under over-pressure conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Atchison, R.J.; Asmis, G.J.K.; Campbell, F.R.

1979-01-01

The Atomic Energy Control Board of Canada initiated June, 1975, a major study of the behaviour of concrete containment under over-pressure conditions. Although extensive theoretical and experimental work has been carried out for thick-walled Prestressed Concrete Reactor Vessels (PCRV's), there is a want of information on the non-linear response of thin-walled structures typical of the CANDU, 600 MW(e) cylindrical/spherical, post-tensioned containment shells. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the total program, to present the reasons behind the research contract, and the specification and implementation of the work. The results of the theoretical and experimental work and their implications with respect to Canadian Concrete Containment practice are discussed. This study is unique, and, as far as is known, has no world-wide precedence. (orig.)

Reliability analysis of prestressed concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang, J.; Zhao, Y.; Sun, J.

1993-01-01

The reliability analysis of prestressed concrete containment structures subjected to combinations of static and dynamic loads with consideration of uncertainties of structural and load parameters is presented. Limit state probabilities for given parameters are calculated using the procedure developed at BNL, while that with consideration of parameter uncertainties are calculated by a fast integration for time variant structural reliability. The limit state surface of the prestressed concrete containment is constructed directly incorporating the prestress. The sensitivities of the Choleskey decomposition matrix and the natural vibration character are calculated by simplified procedures. (author)

Non destructive Testing (NDT) of concrete containing hematite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohamad Pauzi Ismail; Noor Azreen Masenwat; Suhairy Sani; Nasharuddin Isa; Mohamad Haniza Mahmud

2014-01-01

This paper described the results of Non-destructive ultrasonic and rebound hammer measurements on concrete containing hematite. Local hematite stones were used as aggregates to produce high density concrete for application in X-and gamma shielding. Concrete cube samples (150 mm x 150 mm x 150 mm) containing hematite as coarse aggregates were prepared by changing mix ratio, water to cement ratio (w/c) and types of fine aggregate. All samples were cured in water for 7 days and then tested after 28 days. Density, rebound number(N) and ultrasonic pulse velocity (UPV) of the samples were taken before compressed to failure. The measurement results are explained and discussed. (author)

Compressive strength of concrete and mortar containing fly ash

Science.gov (United States)

Liskowitz, John W.; Wecharatana, Methi; Jaturapitakkul, Chai; Cerkanowicz, deceased, Anthony E.

1997-01-01

The present invention relates to concrete, mortar and other hardenable mixtures comprising cement and fly ash for use in construction. The invention includes a method for predicting the compressive strength of such a hardenable mixture, which is very important for planning a project. The invention also relates to hardenable mixtures comprising cement and fly ash which can achieve greater compressive strength than hardenable mixtures containing only concrete over the time period relevant for construction. In a specific embodiment, a formula is provided that accurately predicts compressive strength of concrete containing fly ash out to 180 days. In other specific examples, concrete and mortar containing about 15% to 25% fly ash as a replacement for cement, which are capable of meeting design specifications required for building and highway construction, are provided. Such materials can thus significantly reduce construction costs.

SLAM: a sodium-limestone concrete ablation model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suo-Anttila, A.J.

1983-12-01

SLAM is a three-region model, containing a pool (sodium and reaction debris) region, a dry (boundary layer and dehydrated concrete) region, and a wet (hydrated concrete) region. The model includes a solution to the mass, momentum, and energy equations in each region. A chemical kinetics model is included to provide heat sources due to chemical reactions between the sodium and the concrete. Both isolated model as well as integrated whole code evaluations have been made with good results. The chemical kinetics and water migration models were evaluated separately, with good results. Several small and large-scale sodium limestone concrete experiments were simulated with reasonable agreement between SLAM and the experimental results. The SLAM code was applied to investigate the effects of mixing, pool temperature, pool depth and fluidization. All these phenomena were found to be of significance in the predicted response of the sodium concrete interaction. Pool fluidization is predicted to be the most important variable in large scale interactions

Concrete containment vessels (CCV) for nuclear power plants, (1)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ibe, Yukimi; Kitajima, Masatake

1977-01-01

Containment vessels (CV) and the construction of concrete containment vessels (CCV) for nuclear power plants are described generally, and their use and techniques in foreign countries are illustrated, in connection with the introduction of CCV to Japanese nuclear power plants. The introduction deals with the construction plan of Japanese nuclear power plants, and with the difficulties in the steel CV for large scale construction. The investigations, tests and researches are not yet sufficient. The prompt establishment of safety supported by technical criteria, analytical methods and experiments is desired. The second part deals with the consideration for aseismatic design, construction, function and characteristics of CCV. The classification and currently employed CCV, which is mainly reinforced concrete containment vessels (RCCV), are described, and the typical CCV employed for BWR is illustrated. Further, the typical arrangement of reinforcing steels at the cylindrical portion and the dome portion of RCCV is illustrated. The third part deals with the present state of CCV abroad. A prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) of Turkey Point power plant is illustrated as a typical example of CCV. The tests reported in the international meeting for the design, construction and operation of concrete pressure vessels and concrete containment vessels at York University in England in 1975 are reviewed. Typical examples of the design conditions, the size and form, and the construction procedure for PCCV and RCCV abroad are reviewed. (Iwakiri, K.)

Investigation of radial shear in the wall-base juncture of a 1:4 scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R. [ANATECH Corp., San Diego, CA (United States); Luk, V.K.; Hessheimer, M.F. [Sandia National Labs., Albuquerque, NM (United States)

1998-04-01

Construction of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model is underway as part of a cooperative containment research program at Sandia National Laboratories. The work is co-sponsored by the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) of Japan and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Preliminary analyses of the Sandia 1:4 Scale PCCV Model have determined axisymmetric global behavior and have estimated the potential for failure in several areas, including the wall-base juncture and near penetrations. Though the liner tearing failure mode has been emphasized, the assumption of a liner tearing failure mode is largely based on experience with reinforced concrete containments. For the PCCV, the potential for shear failure at or near the liner tearing pressure may be considerable and requires detailed investigation. This paper examines the behavior of the PCCV in the region most susceptible to a radial shear failure, the wall-basemat juncture region. Prediction of shear failure in concrete structures is a difficult goal, both experimentally and analytically. As a structure begins to deform under an applied system of forces that produce shear, other deformation modes such as bending and tension/compression begin to influence the response. Analytically, difficulties lie in characterizing the decrease in shear stiffness and shear stress and in predicting the associated transfer of stress to reinforcement as cracks become wider and more extensive. This paper examines existing methods for representing concrete shear response and existing criteria for predicting shear failure, and it discusses application of these methods and criteria to the study of the 1:4 scale PCCV.

Investigation of radial shear in the wall-base juncture of a 1:4 scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R.; Luk, V.K.; Hessheimer, M.F.

1998-04-01

Construction of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model is underway as part of a cooperative containment research program at Sandia National Laboratories. The work is co-sponsored by the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC) of Japan and US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Preliminary analyses of the Sandia 1:4 Scale PCCV Model have determined axisymmetric global behavior and have estimated the potential for failure in several areas, including the wall-base juncture and near penetrations. Though the liner tearing failure mode has been emphasized, the assumption of a liner tearing failure mode is largely based on experience with reinforced concrete containments. For the PCCV, the potential for shear failure at or near the liner tearing pressure may be considerable and requires detailed investigation. This paper examines the behavior of the PCCV in the region most susceptible to a radial shear failure, the wall-basemat juncture region. Prediction of shear failure in concrete structures is a difficult goal, both experimentally and analytically. As a structure begins to deform under an applied system of forces that produce shear, other deformation modes such as bending and tension/compression begin to influence the response. Analytically, difficulties lie in characterizing the decrease in shear stiffness and shear stress and in predicting the associated transfer of stress to reinforcement as cracks become wider and more extensive. This paper examines existing methods for representing concrete shear response and existing criteria for predicting shear failure, and it discusses application of these methods and criteria to the study of the 1:4 scale PCCV

Aseismic safety analysis of a prestressed concrete containment vessel for CPR1000 nuclear power plant

Science.gov (United States)

Yi, Ping; Wang, Qingkang; Kong, Xianjing

2017-01-01

The containment vessel of a nuclear power plant is the last barrier to prevent nuclear reactor radiation. Aseismic safety analysis is the key to appropriate containment vessel design. A prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model with a semi-infinite elastic foundation and practical arrangement of tendons has been established to analyze the aseismic ability of the CPR1000 PCCV structure under seismic loads and internal pressure. A method to model the prestressing tendon and its interaction with concrete was proposed and the axial force of the prestressing tendons showed that the simulation was reasonable and accurate. The numerical results show that for the concrete structure, the location of the cylinder wall bottom around the equipment hatch and near the ring beam are critical locations with large principal stress. The concrete cracks occurred at the bottom of the PCCV cylinder wall under the peak earthquake motion of 0.50 g, however the PCCV was still basically in an elastic state. Furthermore, the concrete cracks occurred around the equipment hatch under the design internal pressure of 0.4MPa, but the steel liner was still in the elastic stage and its leak-proof function soundness was verified. The results provide the basis for analysis and design of containment vessels.

Modeling of delayed strains of concrete under biaxial loadings. Application to the reactor containment of nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benboudjema, F.

2002-12-01

The prediction of delayed strains is of crucial importance for durability and long-term serviceability of concrete structures (bridges, containment vessels of nuclear power plants, etc.). Indeed, creep and shrinkage cause cracking, losses of pre-stress and redistribution of stresses, and also, rarely, the ruin of the structure. The objective of this work is to develop numerical tools, able to predict the long-term behavior of concrete structures. Thus, a new hydro mechanical model is developed, including the description of drying, shrinkage, creep and cracking phenomena for concrete as a non-saturated porous medium. The modeling of drying shrinkage is based on an unified approach of creep and shrinkage. Basic and drying creep models are based on relevant chemo-physical mechanisms, which occur at different scales of the cement paste. The basic creep is explicitly related to the micro-diffusion of the adsorbed water between inter-hydrates and intra-hydrates and the capillary pores, and the sliding of the C-S-H gel at the nano-porosity level. The drying creep is induced by the micro-diffusion of the adsorbed water at different scales of the porosity, under the simultaneous effects of drying and mechanical loadings. Drying shrinkage is, therefore, assumed to result from the elastic and delayed response of the solid skeleton, submitted to both capillary and disjoining pressures. Furthermore, the cracking behavior of concrete is described by an orthotropic elastoplastic damage model. The coupling between all these phenomena is performed by using effective stresses which account for both external applied stresses and pore pressures. This model has been incorporated into a finite element code. The analysis of the long-term behavior is also performed on concrete specimens and prestressed concrete structures submitted to simultaneous drying and mechanical loadings. (author)

The study on the mechanical characteristics of concrete of nuclear reactor containment structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jung, W. S.; Kwon, K. J.; Cho, M. S.; Song, Y. C.

2000-01-01

Reactor containment structure of nuclear power plant designed by prestressed concrete causes time-dependent prestress loss due to the mechanical characteristics of concrete. Prestress loss strongly affects to the safety factor of structure under the circumstances of designing, construction and inspection. Thus, this study is to investigate the mechanical characteristics of reactor containment concrete structure of Yonggwang No. 5 and 6. In this study, the compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, poisson's ratio and creep test followed by ASTM code are performed to investigate the mechanical characteristics of concrete made by V type cement. Additionally, since creep causes more time-dependent prestress loss than the other, the measurement value from the creep test is compared with the results from the creep prediction equations by KSCE, JSCE, Hansen, ACI and CEB-FIP model for the effective application. Hereafter, the results of this study may enable to assist the calculation effective stress considering time-dependent prestress loss of the prestressed concrete structures

Analysis of radioactivity increase of rad waste filled in fibre-reinforced concrete container regarding external exposure of workers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baratova, D.; Hrncir, T.; Necas, V.

2012-01-01

The paper deals with the assessment of the external radiation exposure of workers performing the individual tasks associated with disposal of the fibre-reinforced concrete containers in the National Radioactive Waste Repository in Mochovce. Models for fibre-reinforced concrete containers with maximum activity allowable for transport and for fibre-reinforced concrete containers contained radionuclides at the common level of activity concentration were created in order to analyze the option of fibre-reinforced concrete containers radioactivity increase. Calculations of individual effective doses have been carried out for three workers who work in the control area of the waste disposal facility dosimetrist, assistant and crane worker. (Authors)

Assessment of models for steam release from concrete and implications for modeling corium behavior in reactor cavities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Washington, K.E.; Carroll, D.E.

1988-01-01

Models for concrete outgassing have been developed and incorporated into a developmental version of the CONTAIN code for the assessment of corium behavior in reactor cavities. The resultant code, referred to as CONTAIN/OR in order to distinguish it from the released version of CONTAIN, has the capability to model transient heat conduction and concrete outgassing in core-concrete interaction problems. This study focused on validation and assessment of the outgassing model through comparisons with other concrete response codes. In general, the model is not mechanistic; however, there are certain important processes and feedback effects that are treated rigorously. The CONTAIN outgassing model was compared against two mechanistic concrete response codes (USINT and SLAM). Gas release and temperature profile predictions for several concrete thicknesses and heating rates were performed with acceptable agreement seen in each case. The model was also applied to predict corium behavior in a reactor cavity for a hypothetical severe accident scenario. In this calculation, gases evolving from the concrete during nonablating periods fueled exothermic Zr chemical reactions in the corium. Higher corium temperatures and more concrete ablation were observed when compared with that seen when concrete outgassing was neglected. Even though this result depends somewhat upon the makeup of the corium sources and the concrete type in the cavity, it does show that concrete outgassing can be important in the modeling of corium behavior in reactor cavities. In particular, the need to expand the traditional role of CORCON from steady-state ablation to the consideration of more transient events is clearly evident as a result of this work. 5 refs., 11 figs., 1 tab

Over-pressure test on BARCOM pre-stressed concrete containment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Parmar, R.M.; Singh, Tarvinder; Thangamani, I.; Trivedi, Neha; Singh, Ram Kumar, E-mail: rksingh@barc.gov.in

2014-04-01

Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Trombay has organized an International Round Robin Analysis program to carry out the ultimate load capacity assessment of BARC Containment (BARCOM) test model. The test model located in BARC facilities Tarapur; is a 1:4 scale representation of 540 MWe Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) pre-stressed concrete inner containment structure of Tarapur Atomic Power Station (TAPS) unit 3 and 4. There are a large number of sensors installed in BARCOM that include vibratory wire strain gauges of embedded and spot-welded type, surface mounted electrical resistance strain gauges, dial gauges, earth pressure cells, tilt meters and high resolution digital camera systems for structural response, crack monitoring and fracture parameter measurement to evaluate the local and global behavior of the containment test model. The model has been tested pneumatically during the low pressure tests (LPTs) followed by proof test (PT) and integrated leakage rate test (ILRT) during commissioning. Further the over pressure test (OPT) has been carried out to establish the failure mode of BARCOM Test-Model. The over-pressure test will be completed shortly to reach the functional failure of the test model. Pre-test evaluation of BARCOM was carried out with the results obtained from the registered international round robin participants in January 2009 followed by the post-test assessment in February 2011. The test results along with the various failure modes related to the structural members – concrete, rebars and tendons identified in terms of prescribed milestones are presented in this paper along with the comparison of the pre-test predictions submitted by the registered participants of the Round Robin Analysis for BARCOM test model.

Development of prestressed concrete containment vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yuji, Hideo; Kuniyoshi, Mutsumu; Nagata, Kaoru

1983-01-01

This paper presents a summary of evaluations for the selection of the structural and prestressing system type to be employed for the first domestic Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessel (PCCV) in Japan. This paper also discusses characteristic features in the design of the liner plate system provided on the PCCV inner surface to assure its leak-tight integrity. Prestressed concrete containment vessels so far constructed in foreign countries are to a considerable extent of different structural types, depending on differences in dome shapes, prestressing systems and number of buttresses. These differences are caused not only by differences in design philosophy and construction practices, but also by difference in the level of technology of the times when the individual containment vessels are being constructed. In the investigation reported herein, the most suitable types of PCCV and Prestressing Systems were determined as the results of an overall comparative evaluation of data and information obtained from PCCV's so far constructed from the design, construction and cost aspects, taking into consideration the seismic criteria, available technology, construction practices, regulations and technical standards in Japan. The function of the liner plate system requires the liner to have enough deformability so that the liner deformation can be consistent with the PCCV concrete deformation. Therefore, in the design of the liner plate system a method for evaluating liner deformability was employed, instead of the stress evaluation method which is widely used in the design of ordinary structures. (author)

Effect of high temperature on integrity of concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bhat, P.D.

1986-01-01

The effect of high temperature on concrete material properties and structural behavior are studied in order to relate these effects to the performance of concrete containment structures. Salient data obtained from a test program undertaken to study the behavior of a restrained concrete structure under thermal gradient loads up to its ultimate limit are described. The preliminary results indicate that concrete material properties can be considered to remain unaltered up to temperatures of 100 0 C. The presence of thermal gradients did not significantly affect the structures ultimate mechanical load capacity. Relaxation of restraint forces due to creep was found to be an important factor. The test findings are compared with the observations made in available literature. The effect of test findings on the integrity analysis of a containment structure are discussed. The problem is studied from the viewpoint of a CANDU heavy water reactor containment

Constitutive relation of concrete containing meso-structural characteristics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Li Guo

Full Text Available A constitutive model of concrete is proposed based on the mixture theory of porous media within thermodynamic framework. By treating concrete as a multi-phase multi-component mixture, we constructed the constitutive functions for elastic, interfacial, and plastic strain energy respectively. A constitutive law of concrete accommodating internal micro-cracks and interfacial boundaries was established. The peak stress predicted with the developed model depends primarily on the volume ratio of aggregate, and the results explain very well reported experimental phenomena. The strain-stress curve under uniaxial loading was found in a good agreement with experimental data for concrete with three different mixing proportions. Keywords: Constitutive model of concrete, Mixture theory of porous media, Meso-structure, Interfacial energy

Engineering Performance of High Strength Concrete Containing Steel Fibre Reinforcement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md Azree Othuman Mydin

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The development and utilization of the high strength concrete in the construction industry have been increasing rapidly. Fiber reinforced concrete is introduced to overcome the weakness of the conventional concrete because concrete normally can crack under a low tensile force and it is known to be brittle. Steel fibre is proved to be the popular and best combination in the high strength concrete to result the best in the mechanical and durability properties of high strength concrete with consideration of curing time, steel fibre geometry, concrete grade and else more. The incorporation of steel fibre in the mortar mixture is known as steel fibre reinforced concrete have the potential to produce improvement in the workability, strength, ductility and the deformation of high strength concrete. Besides that, steel fibre also increases the tensile strength of concrete and improves the mechanical properties of the steel fibre reinforced concrete. The range for any high strength concrete is between 60MPa-100MPa. Steel fibre reinforced concrete which contains straight fibres has poorer physical properties than that containing hooked end stainless steel fibre due to the length and the hooked steel fibre provide a better effective aspects ratio. Normally, steel fibre tensile strength is in the range of 1100MPa-1700MPa. Addition of less steel fibre volumes in the range of 0.5% to 1.0% can produce better increase in the flexural fatigue strength. The strength can be increased with addition of steel fibre up to certain percentage. This paper will review and present some basic properties of steel fibre reinforced concrete such as mechanical, workability and durability properties.

Concrete containment tests: Phase 2, Structural elements with liner plates: Interim report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hanson, N.W.; Roller, J.J.; Schultz, D.M.; Julien, J.T.; Weinmann, T.L.

1987-08-01

The tests described in this report are part of Phase 2 of the Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) program. The overall objective of the EPRI program is to provide a test-verified analytical method of estimating capacities of concrete reactor containment buildings under internal overpressurization from postulated degraded core accidents. The Phase 2 testing included seven large-scale specimens representing structural elements from reinforced and prestressed concrete reactor containment buildings. Six of the seven test specimens were square wall elements. Of these six specimens, four were used for biaxial tension tests to determine strength, deformation, and leak-rate characteristics of full-scale wall elements representing prestressed concrete containment design. The remaining two square wall elements were used for thermal buckling tests to determine whether buckling of the steel liner plate would occur between anchorages when subjected to a sudden extreme temperature differential. The last of the seven test specimens for Phase 2 represented the region where the wall and the basemat intersect in a prestressed concrete containment building. A multi-directional loading scheme was used to produce high bending moments and shear in the wall/basemat junction region. The objective of this test was to determine if there is potential for liner plate tearing in the junction region. Results presented include observed behavior and extensive measurements of deformations and strains as a function of applied load. The data are being used to confirm analytical models for predicting strength and deformation of containment structures in a separate parallel analytical investigation sponsored by EPRI

Pretest round robin analysis of 1:4-scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hessheimer, M.F.; Luk, V.K.; Klamerus, E.W.; Shibata, S.; Mitsugi, S.; Costello, J.F.

2001-01-01

The work reported herein represents, arguably, the state of the art in the numerical simulation of the response of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) model to pressure loads up to failure. A significant expenditure of time and money on the part of the sponsors, contractors, and Round Robin participants was required to meet the objectives. While it is difficult to summarize the results of this extraordinary effort in a few paragraphs, the following observations are offered for the reader's consideration: almost half the participants used ABAQUS as the primary computational tool for performing the pretest analyses. The other participants used a variety of codes, most of which were developed ''in house''. (author)

Concrete containments in Swedish nuclear power plants. A review of construction and material

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Roth, Thomas; Silfwerbrand, Johan; Sundquist, Haakan

2002-12-01

attention. Current investigation shows that the documentation on the concrete containment structures of the Swedish nuclear power stations is fairly complete after the authors have obtained new information through a survey during 2001 and included these data in the report. The target group of this report are structural engineers and other people interested in knowing how the prestressed concrete containments in the Swedish nuclear power stations are designed, detailed and constructed. Uprising questions regarding the structural behaviour of the containment structures ought to be evaluated by using present material properties and not the data describing the used building materials at the design stage. The aim of this research project is to gain new knowledge on life span questions regarding prestressing steel in concrete structures, partly generally and partly with focus on Swedish nuclear power stations and Swedish bridges. The project covers both bonded and un bonded prestressing steel. This report describes the containment structures for all Swedish nuclear power stations. The information is both given in Chapters 5 through 16 and assembled in tables in Appendix A. The intention is that the documentation shall grow and be supplemented as soon as new information, either new data describing the containment structures or new measuring results, will be obtained or produced within current research project. Design and detailing of prestressed concrete structures are among others based on the knowledge of time-dependent material changes regarding concrete (creep and shrinkage) and prestressing steel (relaxation). The intention is that the following items will treated: general evaluation; testing of prestressing steel and concrete properties; assessment of the risk of a time-dependent increase of brittleness of the prestressing steel; comparisons with codes; modelling of steel relaxation; unidimensional modelling of prestressing losses; regard to elevated temperatures

General requirements for concrete containment structures for CANDU nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-07-01

This standard provides the general requirements used in the design, construction, testing, and commissioning of concrete containment structures for CANDU nuclear power plants designated as class containment and is directed to the owners, designers, manufacturers, fabricators, and constructors of the concrete components and parts

Environmental performance and mechanical analysis of concrete containing recycled asphalt pavement (RAP) and waste precast concrete as aggregate.

Science.gov (United States)

Erdem, Savaş; Blankson, Marva Angela

2014-01-15

The overall objective of this research project was to investigate the feasibility of incorporating 100% recycled aggregates, either waste precast concrete or waste asphalt planning, as replacements for virgin aggregates in structural concrete and to determine the mechanical and environmental performance of concrete containing these aggregates. Four different types of concrete mixtures were designed with the same total water cement ratio (w/c=0.74) either by using natural aggregate as reference or by totally replacing the natural aggregate with recycled material. Ground granulated blast furnace slag (GGBS) was used as a mineral addition (35%) in all mixtures. The test results showed that it is possible to obtain satisfactory performance for strength characteristics of concrete containing recycled aggregates, if these aggregates are sourced from old precast concrete. However, from the perspective of the mechanical properties, the test results indicated that concrete with RAP aggregate cannot be used for structural applications. In terms of leaching, the results also showed that the environmental behaviour of the recycled aggregate concrete is similar to that of the natural aggregate concrete. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Safety margin evaluation of pre-stressed concrete nuclear containment vessel model with BARC code ULCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Singh, R.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2002-01-01

Full text: Ultimate load capacity assessment of nuclear containments has been a thrust research area for Indian pressurised heavy water reactor (PHWR) power programme. For containment safety assessment of Indian PHWRs a finite element code ULCA was developed at BARC, Trombay. This code has been extensively benchmarked with experimental results and for prediction of safety margins of Indian PHWRs. The present paper highlights the analysis results for prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) tested at Sandia National Labs, USA in a round robin analysis activity co-sponsored by Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), Japan and the U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Three levels of failure pressure predictions namely the upper bound, the most probable and the lower bound (all with 90% confidence) were made as per the requirements of the round robin analysis activity. The most likely failure pressure is predicted to be in the range of 2.95 Pd to 3.15 Pd (Pd = design pressure of 0.39 MPa for the PCCV model) depending on the type of liners used in the construction of the PCCV model. The lower bound value of the ultimate pressure of 2.80 Pd and the upper bound of the ultimate pressure of 3.45 Pd are also predicted from the analysis. These limiting values depend on the assumptions of the analysis for simulating the concrete tendon interaction and the strain hardening characteristics of the steel members. The experimental test has been recently concluded at Sandia Laboratory and the peak pressure reached during the test is 3.3 Pd that is enveloped by our upper bound prediction of 3.45 Pd and is close to the predicted most likely pressure of 3.15 Pd

Study on effective prestressing effects on concrete containment under the design-basis pressure condition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun Feng; Pan Rong; Wang Lu; Mao Huan; Yang Yu

2013-01-01

Prestressing technology is widely used in nuclear power plant containment building, and the durability of containment structure is affected directly by the distribution and loss of prestressing value under design-basis pressure. Containment structure and the distribution of prestressing system are introduced briefly. Furthermore, the calculating process of horizontal prestressing bunch loss near the equipment hatch hole is put forward in details, and the containment structure prestressing loss when 5-year pressure test is obtained. Based above analysis, the finite element model of the prestressed concrete containment structure is built by using ANSYS code, the prestressing effect on concrete containment is analysed. The results show that most of the design pressure is bore by the prestressing system under the design-basis pressure, so the containment structure is safe. These conclusions are consistent with prestressing containment system design concepts, which can provide reference to the engineering staff. (authors)

High-impact concrete for fill in US Department of Transportation type shipping containers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Greenhalgh, W.O.; Cash, R.J.

1990-01-01

This report describes the use of light-weight, high-impact concrete in U.S. Department of Transportation-type shipments. The formulations described are substantially lighter in weight (20 to 50 percent) than construction concrete, but product test specimens generally yield superior impact characteristics. The use of this specialty concrete for container fill, encapsulations, or liquid-waste solidification can be advantageous. Use of the material for container or cask construction has the advantage of lighter weight for easier handling, and the container consistently exhibits better performance on drop tests. High-impact concrete does have the disadvantage of less gamma radiation shielding per volume, but some formulation changes discussed in this report can be used to prepare better shielding concrete. Test characteristics of high-impact concrete are included. 3 refs., 6 figs., 7 tabs

Strategy for 100-year life of the ACR-1000 concrete containment structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrishami, H.; Elgohary, M.

2006-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to present the Plant Life Management (PLiM) strategy for the concrete containment structure of the ACR-1000 (Advanced CANDU Reactor) designed by AECL. The ACR-1000 is designed for 100-year plant life including 60-year operating life and additional 40-year decommissioning period of time. The approach adopted for the PLiM strategy of the concrete containment structure is a preventive one, key areas being: 1) design methodology, 2) material performance and 3) life cycle management and ageing management program. In the design phase, in addition to strength and serviceability, durability is a major requirement during the service life and decommissioning phase of the ACR structure. Parameters affecting durability design include: a) concrete performance, b) structural application, and c) environmental conditions. Due to the complex nature of the environmental effects acting on structures during the service life of project, it is considered that true improved performance during the service life can be achieved by improving the material characteristics. Many recent innovations in advanced concrete materials technology have made it possible to produce modern concrete such as high-performance concrete with exceptional performance characteristics. In this paper, the PLiM strategy for the ACR-1000 concrete containment is presented. In addition to addressing the design methodology and material performance areas, a systematic approach for ageing management program for the concrete containment structure is presented. (author)

Depleted uranium concrete container feasibility study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Haelsig, R.T.

1994-09-01

The purpose of this report is to consider the feasibility of using containers constructed of depleted uranium aggregate concrete (DUCRETE) to store and transport radioactive materials. The method for this study was to review the advantages and disadvantages of DUCRETE containers considering design requirements for potential applications. The author found that DUCRETE is a promising material for onsite storage containers, provided DUCRETE vessels can be certified for one-way transport to disposal sites. The author also found that DUCRETE multipurpose spent nuclear fuel storage/transport packages are technically viable, provided altered temperature acceptance limits can be developed for DUCRETE

77 FR 69508 - Inservice Inspection of Prestressed Concrete Containment Structures With Grouted Tendons

Science.gov (United States)

2012-11-19

... Containment Structures With Grouted Tendons AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission. ACTION: Regulatory guide... (RG) 1.90, ``Inservice Inspection of Prestressed Concrete Containment Structures with Grouted Tendons... appropriate surveillance program for prestressed concrete containment structures with grouted tendons...

Thermal effects in concrete containment analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pfeiffer, P.A.; Kennedy, J.M.; Marchertas, A.H.

1988-01-01

Analyses of the thermo-mechanical response of the 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment are presented. Three temperature- pressure scenarios are analyzed to complete loss of the pressure integrity. These results are compared to the analysis of pressure alone, to assess the importance of thermal effects. 19 refs., 9 figs., 8 tabs

Measured Prestress Loss of over 20-Year-Old Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessels

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hahm, Dae Gi; Choun, Young Sun; Choi, In Kil [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2010-10-15

of these beams have recently been tested. Results from the beam tests and from the in-service-inspections for Korean containments are presented in this paper. The measured loss of tendon force has been estimated by using different models for predicting creep and shrinkage of the concrete and relaxation in the prestressing steel

Measured Prestress Loss of over 20-Year-Old Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hahm, Dae Gi; Choun, Young Sun; Choi, In Kil

2010-01-01

of these beams have recently been tested. Results from the beam tests and from the in-service-inspections for Korean containments are presented in this paper. The measured loss of tendon force has been estimated by using different models for predicting creep and shrinkage of the concrete and relaxation in the prestressing steel

Long-Term Behaviors of the OPC Concrete with Fly-ash and Type V Concrete Applied on Reactor Containment Building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Eui Sik; Lee, Hee Taik; Paek, Yong Lak; Park, Young Soo

2010-01-01

The prestressed concrete has been used extensively in the construction of Reactor Containment Buildings (RCBs) in Korea in order to strengthen the RCBs and at the same time, prevent the release of radiation due to the Design Basis Accident and Design Basis Earthquake. It is well known that the prestressed concrete loses its prestressing force over the age, and the shrinkage and creep of the concrete significantly contributes to these long term prestressing losses. In this study, an evaluations of long term behaviors of the concrete such as creep and shrinkage have been performed for two types of concretes : Ordinary Portland Cement containing fly-ash used for the Shin- Kori 1 and 2 NPP and Type V cement used for the Ul- Chin 5 and 6 NPP

Long-Term Behaviors of the OPC Concrete with Fly-ash and Type V Concrete Applied on Reactor Containment Building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yoon, Eui Sik; Lee, Hee Taik; Paek, Yong Lak [Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Park, Young Soo [Korea Hydro and Nuclear Power Co., Busan (Korea, Republic of)

2010-10-15

The prestressed concrete has been used extensively in the construction of Reactor Containment Buildings (RCBs) in Korea in order to strengthen the RCBs and at the same time, prevent the release of radiation due to the Design Basis Accident and Design Basis Earthquake. It is well known that the prestressed concrete loses its prestressing force over the age, and the shrinkage and creep of the concrete significantly contributes to these long term prestressing losses. In this study, an evaluations of long term behaviors of the concrete such as creep and shrinkage have been performed for two types of concretes : Ordinary Portland Cement containing fly-ash used for the Shin- Kori 1 and 2 NPP and Type V cement used for the Ul- Chin 5 and 6 NPP

Modeling basic creep in concrete at early-age under compressive and tensile loading

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hilaire, Adrien, E-mail: adrien.hilaire@ens-cachan.fr [ENS Cachan/CNRS UMR8535/UPMC/PRES UniverSud Paris, Cachan (France); Benboudjema, Farid; Darquennes, Aveline; Berthaud, Yves [ENS Cachan/CNRS UMR8535/UPMC/PRES UniverSud Paris, Cachan (France); Nahas, Georges [ENS Cachan/CNRS UMR8535/UPMC/PRES UniverSud Paris, Cachan (France); Institut de radioprotection et de sureté nucléaire, Fontenay-aux-Roses (France)

2014-04-01

A numerical model has been developed to predict early age cracking for massive concrete structures, and especially concrete nuclear containment vessels. Major phenomena are included: hydration, heat diffusion, autogenous and thermal shrinkage, creep and cracking. Since studied structures are massive, drying is not taken into account. Such modeling requires the identification of several material parameters. Literature data is used to validate the basic creep model. A massive wall, representative of a concrete nuclear containment, is simulated; predicted cracking is consistent with observation and is found highly sensitive to the creep phenomenon.

Shell finite element of reinforced concrete for internal pressure analysis of nuclear containment building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Hong Pyo, E-mail: hplee@kepri.re.k [Nuclear Power Laboratory, Korea Electric Power Research Institute, 103-16 Munji-Dong, Yuseong-Gu, Daejeon 305-380 (Korea, Republic of)

2011-02-15

Research highlights: Finite element program with 9-node degenerated shell element was developed. The developed program was mainly forced to analyze nuclear containment building. Concrete material model is adapted Niwa and Yamada failure criteria. The performance of program developed is verified through various numerical examples. The numerical analysis results similar to the experimental data. - Abstract: This paper describes a 9-node degenerated shell finite element (FE), an analysis program developed for ultimate pressure capacity evaluation and nonlinear analysis of a nuclear containment building. The shell FE developed adopts the Reissner-Mindlin (RM) assumptions to consider the degenerated shell solidification technique and the degree of transverse shear strain occurring in the structure. The material model of the concrete determines the level of the concrete stress and strain by using the equivalent stress-equivalent strain relationship. When a crack occurs in the concrete, the material behavior is expressed through the tension stiffening model that takes adhesive stress into account and through the shear transfer mechanism and compressive strength reduction model of the crack plane. In addition, the failure envelope proposed by Niwa is adopted as the crack occurrence criteria for the compression-tension region, and the failure envelope proposed by Yamada is used for the tension-tension region. The performance of the program developed is verified through various numerical examples. The analysis based on the application of the shell FE developed from the results of verified examples produced results similar to the experiment or other analysis results.

Design of radial reinforcement for prestressed concrete containments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wang, Shen, E-mail: swang@bechtel.com [Bechtel Power Corporation, 5275 Westview Drive, BP2-2C3, Frederick, MD 21703 (United States); Munshi, Javeed A., E-mail: jamunshi@bechtel.com [Bechtel Power Corporation, 5275 Westview Drive, BP2-2C3, Frederick, MD 21703 (United States)

2013-02-15

Highlights: ► A rigorous formulae is proposed to calculate radial stress within prestressed concrete containments. ► The proposed method is validated by finite element analysis in an illustrative practical example. ► A partially prestressed condition is more critical than a fully prestressed condition for radial tension. ► Practical design consideration is provided for detailing of radial reinforcement. -- Abstract: Nuclear containments are critical components for safety of nuclear power plants. Failure can result in catastrophic safety consequences as a result of leakage of radiation. Prestressed concrete containments have been used in large nuclear power plants with significant design internal pressure. These containments are generally reinforced with prestressing tendons in the circumferential (hoop) and meridional (vertical) directions. The curvature effect of the tendons introduces radial tensile stresses in the concrete shell which are generally neglected in the design of such structures. It is assumed that such tensile radial stresses are small as such no radial reinforcement is provided for this purpose. But recent instances of significant delaminations in Crystal River Unit 3 in Florida have elevated the need for reevaluation of the radial tension issue in prestressed containment. Note that currently there are no well accepted industry standards for design and detailing of radial reinforcement. This paper discusses the issue of radial tension in prestressed cylindrical and dome shaped structures and proposes formulae to calculate radial stresses. A practical example is presented to illustrate the use of the proposed method which is then verified by using state of art finite element analysis. This paper also provides some practical design consideration for detailing of radial reinforcement in prestressed containments.

Plant life management of the ACR-1000 Concrete containment structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrishami, H.H.; Ricciuti, R.; Elgohary, M.

2009-01-01

The Ageing of reinforced concrete structures due to service conditions, aggressive environments, or accidents may cause their strength, serviceability and durability to decrease over time. For a new plant, a Plant Life Management (PLiM) program should start in the design process and then continues through the plant operation and decommissioning. Hence, PLiM must provide not only Ageing Management program (AMP) but also provide requirements on material characteristic and design criteria as well. The purpose of this paper is to present the Plant Life Management (PLiM) strategy for the concrete containment structure of the ACR-10001 (Advanced CANDU Reactor) designed by AECL. The ACR-1000 is designed for a 100-year plant life including 60-year operating life and an additional 40-year decommissioning period. The approach adopted for the PLiM strategy of the concrete containment structure is a preventive one, key areas being: 1) design methodology, 2) material performance and 3) ageing management program. During the design phase, in addition to strength and serviceability, durability, throughout the service life and decommissioning phase of the ACR-1000 structure, is a major consideration. Factors affecting durability design include: a) concrete performance, b) structural application, and c) consideration of environmental conditions. In addition to addressing the design methodology and material performance requirements, a systematic approach for the ageing management program for the concrete containment structure is presented. (authors)

Posttest analysis of the 1:6 scale reinforced concrete containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pfeiffer, P.A.; Kennedy, J.M.; Marchertas, A.H.

1989-01-01

A prediction of the response of the Sandia National Laboratories 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment model test was made by Argonne National Laboratory. ANL along with nine other organizations performed a detailed nonlinear response analysis of the 1:6-scale model containment subjected to overpressurization in the fall of 1986. The two-dimensional code Temp-Stress and the three-dimensional Neptune code were utilized to predict the global response of the structure, to identify global failure sites and the corresponding failure pressures, and to identify some local failure sites and pressure levels. A series of axisymmetric models was studied with the two-dimensional computer program Temp-Stress. The comparison of these pretest computations with test data from the containment model has provided a test for the capability of the respective finite element codes to predict global failure modes, and hence serves as a validation of these codes. The two-dimensional analyses are discussed in this paper

Mark III Containment vessel/annulus concrete design

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chang, P.S.; Moussa, M.M.

1981-01-01

Recently, engineers have been considering the significant dynamic impact of safety/relief valve (S/RV) discharge loads on the containment structures, safety equipment, and piping systems in BWR type reactors. For a plant in the construction stage, extensive modifications will be made to qualify these new loads. The lower portion of the containment vessel serves as a suppression pool pressure boundary and is designed to sustain the effects of postulated loss of coolant accidents, seismic occurrences, S/RV discharge loads, and other effects. Extremely high spectral peak accelerations of the free-standing steel containment vessel can be obtained during the air dearing process of the S/RV discharge. Parametric studies indicated that a substantial reduction in response can be obtained by increasing the stiffness of the steel containment vessel in the lover area. A concrete backing configuration in the suppression pool area of Mark III Containment is proposed in this paper. A composite action is assumed between the steel containment vessel shell and the concrete section. The system is physically separated from the shield building. This approach warrants an early erection of the shield building and a late installation of piping systems in the containment vessel suppression pool area. Finite element analyses are performed by using ASHSD2 and EASE2 computer codes. The results of the analyses have shown the proposed stress criteria are satisfied. The approach pressented is justified to be a workable system for a new plant design. (orig./HP)

Modeling of interaction between steel and concrete in continuously reinforced concrete pavements : final report.

Science.gov (United States)

2016-01-01

Continuously reinforced concrete pavement (CRCP) contains continuous longitudinal reinforcement with no transverse : expansion within the early life of the pavement and can continue to develop cracks in the long-term. The : accurate modeling of CRCPs...

Overview of concrete containment design practice in the U.S.A

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stevenson, J.D.

1976-01-01

This paper presents a historical summary of the engineering practices and their evolution applied to the design of concrete containment structures in the U.S.A. during the period 1965 to 1974. It reviews the broad spectrum of concrete containment designs developed for the three major Nuclear Steam Supply Systems, Pressurized Water Reactor, Boiling Water Reactor and High Temperature Gas Reactor employed or planned in the U.S.A. during this period. The development of deformed rebar and one way prestress as well as fully prestressed reinforced concrete containment is discussed. Particular attention is paid to base mat-containment shell joint design details as well as the design of reinforcement around large penetrations and those penetrations subject to large pipe thrust loads. In addition to the historical summary, current trends in containment design are identified and projections of future developments are presented. Finally, potential innovations such as plastic liners are discussed. (author)

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program: survey of models for concrete degradation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2014-01-01

Concrete has been used in the construction of nuclear facilities because of two primary properties: its structural strength and its ability to shield radiation. Concrete structures have been known to last for hundreds of years, but they are also known to deteriorate in very short periods of time under adverse conditions. The use of concrete in nuclear facilities for containment and shielding of radiation and radioactive materials has made its performance crucial for the safe operation of the facility. The goal of this report is to review and document the main aging mechanisms of concern for concrete structures in nuclear power plants (NPPs) and the models used in simulations of concrete aging and structural response of degraded concrete structures. This is in preparation for future work to develop and apply models for aging processes and response of aged NPP concrete structures in the Grizzly code. To that end, this report also provides recommendations for developing more robust predictive models for aging effects of performance of concrete.

Influence of temperature on strain monitoring of degradation in concrete containment buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding, Y.; Jaffer, S.; Angell, P.

2015-01-01

Concrete containment buildings (CCBs) are important safety structures in a nuclear power plant (NPP). The CCBs can be made of reinforced and post-tensioned (P-T) concrete. Post-tensioning concrete induces compressive stresses, which have to be overcome for the concrete to crack under tensile loads. However, post-tensioned CCBs may undergo pre-stressing losses as they age, which could affect their performance under accident conditions. CANDU 6 reactor buildings contain grouted post-tensioned tendons as the primary reinforcement. The grouting of the tendons makes direct monitoring of pre-stressing losses via lift-off testing impossible. Therefore, instruments have been installed on an existing reactor building to measure and monitor strains and stresses in the concrete and the deformation of the concrete structure to detect aging degradation and indirectly evaluate the pre-stressing losses. However, the instrumentation readings are affected by temporary volume changes in the concrete caused by the influence of environmental factors, particularly temperature, on concrete. In this work, the focus is on developing an understanding of the effect of temperature on the interpretation of instrumentation data from a reactor building. Vibrating Wire Strain Gauge (VWSG) data has been analysed. The influence of concrete coefficient of thermal expansion and temperature distribution within the reactor building walls, on VWSG data, is discussed based on the analysis of the available instrumentation data and available numerical simulation results. The present study demonstrates that temperature distribution within the containment concrete has a significant impact on the VWSG measurements and the coefficient of thermal expansion of concrete is an important factor in the correction of VWSG data for thermal strain. It is recommended that VWSG data obtained over small temperature variations be considered for interpretation to assess pre-stressing losses. (authors)

Shell finite element of reinforced concrete for internal pressure analysis of nuclear containment building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Hong Pyo

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → Finite element program with 9-node degenerated shell element was developed. → The developed program was mainly forced to analyze nuclear containment building. → Concrete material model is adapted Niwa and Yamada failure criteria. → The performance of program developed is verified through various numerical examples. → The numerical analysis results similar to the experimental data. - Abstract: This paper describes a 9-node degenerated shell finite element (FE), an analysis program developed for ultimate pressure capacity evaluation and nonlinear analysis of a nuclear containment building. The shell FE developed adopts the Reissner-Mindlin (RM) assumptions to consider the degenerated shell solidification technique and the degree of transverse shear strain occurring in the structure. The material model of the concrete determines the level of the concrete stress and strain by using the equivalent stress-equivalent strain relationship. When a crack occurs in the concrete, the material behavior is expressed through the tension stiffening model that takes adhesive stress into account and through the shear transfer mechanism and compressive strength reduction model of the crack plane. In addition, the failure envelope proposed by Niwa is adopted as the crack occurrence criteria for the compression-tension region, and the failure envelope proposed by Yamada is used for the tension-tension region. The performance of the program developed is verified through various numerical examples. The analysis based on the application of the shell FE developed from the results of verified examples produced results similar to the experiment or other analysis results.

Concrete containers in radioactive waste management: a review

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tavares, Bárbara L.; Tello, Clédola Cássia O. de, E-mail: barbaralacerdat@gmail.com [Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nuclear (CDTN/CNEN-MG), Belo Horizonte/MG (Brazil)

2017-07-01

Nuclear power is considered a clean energy, because it does not produce the gases responsible for greenhouse effect. However, like all human activities, it is susceptible to waste generation. With increasing demand for energy in Brazil, the use of nuclear power is being expanded, as a result, the implementation of correct treatment and disposal are a necessity, in order to ensure the non-contamination of the public or environment and that exposure doses are lower than limits by legislation. Most of waste produced in Brazil are classified as low and intermediate radiation level; consequently, the national repository will be near surface, in accordance with the legislation. Considering the multi-barrier concept for the repository, the radioactive waste product is the first barrier. To have a qualified radioactive waste product, it should be solid or solidified using an inert material. With the intention of standardize the disposal process, all radioactive waste products will be placed in concrete containers. These containers will be settled in a concrete cell, the final engineered barrier of the repository. The state of the art is the first part of the study of the concrete containers and its specific criteria acceptation. Since the repository’s operational and surveillance period is 60 and 300 years, respectively, tests still need to be fulfilled in order to ensure the stability and resistance of the material. (author)

Concrete containers in radioactive waste management: a review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tavares, Bárbara L.; Tello, Clédola Cássia O. de

2017-01-01

Nuclear power is considered a clean energy, because it does not produce the gases responsible for greenhouse effect. However, like all human activities, it is susceptible to waste generation. With increasing demand for energy in Brazil, the use of nuclear power is being expanded, as a result, the implementation of correct treatment and disposal are a necessity, in order to ensure the non-contamination of the public or environment and that exposure doses are lower than limits by legislation. Most of waste produced in Brazil are classified as low and intermediate radiation level; consequently, the national repository will be near surface, in accordance with the legislation. Considering the multi-barrier concept for the repository, the radioactive waste product is the first barrier. To have a qualified radioactive waste product, it should be solid or solidified using an inert material. With the intention of standardize the disposal process, all radioactive waste products will be placed in concrete containers. These containers will be settled in a concrete cell, the final engineered barrier of the repository. The state of the art is the first part of the study of the concrete containers and its specific criteria acceptation. Since the repository’s operational and surveillance period is 60 and 300 years, respectively, tests still need to be fulfilled in order to ensure the stability and resistance of the material. (author)

Reinforced concrete containment structures in high seismic zones

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aziz, T.S.

1977-01-01

A new structural concept for reinforced concrete containment structures at sites where earthquake ground motions in terms of the Safe Shutdown Earthquake (SSE) exceeds 0.3 g is presented. The structural concept is based on: (1) an inner steel-lined concrete shell which houses the reactor and provides shielding and containment in the event of loss of coolant accident; (2) an outer annular concrete shell structure which houses auxilary reactor equipment and safeguards systems. These shell structures are supported on a common foundation mat which is embeded in the subgrade. Under stipulated earthquake conditions the two shell structures interact to resist lateral inertia forces. Thus the annular structure which is not a pressure boundary acts as a lateral support for the inner containment shell. The concept is practical, economically feasible and new to practice. An integrated configuration which includes the interior shell, the annular structure and the subgrade is analyzed for several static and dynamic loading conditions. The analysis is done using a finite difference solution scheme for the static loading conditions. A semi-analytical three-dimensional finite element scheme combined with a Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) algorithm is used for the dynamic loading conditions. The effects of cracking of the containment structure due to pressurization in conjunction with earthquake loading are discussed. Analytical results for both the finite difference and the finite element schemes are presented and the sensitivity of the results to changes in the input parameters is studied. General recommendations are given for plant configurations where high seismic loading is a major design consideration

A study on the modeling of molten corium-concrete interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Soo Yong

1994-02-01

The phenomenon known as molten corium concrete interaction (MCCI) has been recognized as important aspects of severe reactor accidents. The potential hazard of a MCCI is the threat to the integrity of the containment building due to the possibility of a basemat melt through, containment overpressurization by noncondensible gases, or oxidation of combustible gases. Over the past several years, a large experimental and analytical effort has been under taken in corium-concrete interaction phenomena by several organization. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the previous analytical results and computer programs, and finally to establish a new stand alone model which can predict the corium-concrete interaction. A model to predict the behavior of molten corium-concrete interaction in the reactor cavity during vessel ruptured accidents is established. Gas film model, gas bubble model, slag model and periodic contact model are employed as a major heat transfer model between corium and concrete. Solidified debris crust is considered at the boundary of molten corium. Upon the experimental observations, no layer stratification is assumed due to the strong dispersion of the metallic melt in the oxidic phase. With the assumption of temperature profile within the corium pool and crust, the temperature distribution of concrete is found by explicit solution of heat conduction equation. The sideward heat transfer rate can be obtained by considering multiplication factor to the downward heat transfer rate. The multiplication factor is treated as a user input because of its large uncertainty. Comparisons are made with two large scale experiments, SURC-2 and BETA V3.3. There is a reasonable agreement in the corium temperature, erosion depth and gas generation between the experimental data and the predicted results with periodic contact model given the uncertainties in the input data or the measurement. The gas bubble model has the highest heat transfer coefficient, and the

Nonlinear finite element analysis of nuclear reinforced prestressed concrete containments up to ultimate load capacity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gupta, A.; Singh, R.K.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Mahajan, S.C.; Kakodkar, A.

1996-01-01

For safety evaluation of nuclear structures a finite element code ULCA (Ultimate Load Capacity Assessment) has been developed. Eight/nine noded isoparametric quadrilateral plate/shell element with reinforcement as a through thickness discrete but integral smeared layer of the element is presented to analyze reinforced and prestressed concrete structures. Various constitutive models such as crushing, cracking in tension, tension stiffening and rebar yielding are studied and effect of these parameters on the reserve strength of structures is brought out through a number of benchmark tests. A global model is used to analyze the prestressed concrete containment wall of a typical 220 MWe Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) up to its ultimate capacity. This demonstrates the adequacy of Indian PHWR containment design to withstand severe accident loads

Concrete containment integrity program at EPRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Winkleblack, R.K.; Tang, Y.K.

1984-01-01

Many in the nuclear power plant business believe that the catastrophic failure mode for reactor containment structures is unrealistic. One of the goals of the EPRI containment integrity program is to demonstrate that this is true. The objective of the program is to provide the utility industry with an experimental data base and a test-validated analytical method for realistically evaluating the actual over-pressure capability of concrete containment buildings and to predict leakage behavior if higher pressures were to occur. The ultimate goal of this research effort is to characterize the containment leakage mode and rate as a function of internal pressure and time so that the risk can be realistically assessed for hypothetical degraded core accidents. Progress in the first and second phases of the three-phase analytical and testing efforts is discussed

Research requirements for improved design of reinforced concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Banerjee, A.K.; Holley, M.J. Jr.

1978-01-01

Reinforced concrete is a competitive material for the construction of nuclear power plant containment structures. However, the designer is constrained by limited data on the behavior of certain construction details which require him to use what may be excessive rebar quantities and lead to difficult and costly construction. This paper discusses several design situations where research is recommended to increase the designer's options, to facilitate construction, and to extend the applicability of reinforced concrete to such changing containment requirements as may be imposed by an evolving nuclear technology. (Auth.)

Numerical Modeling of Local Penetration of Chloride-Containing Medium into Construction Elements Made of Reinforced Concrete

Science.gov (United States)

Ovchinnikov, I. I.; Snezhkina, O. V.; Ovchinnikov, I. G.

2017-11-01

The task of modeling the kinetics of chloride-containing medium penetration into construction elements out of reinforced concrete that have partially damaged anti-corrosion protective coatings is being discussed. As a result, chlorides penetrate the construction element via local surface areas which leads to irregularities between chloride dispersion volumes. The kinetics of chloride penetration is described by the equation of diffusion to solve which the CONDUCT software complex by professor S. Patankar was used. The methodology used to solve the diffusional equation is described. The results of the evaluation of concentration field in the axial section of a cylindrical construction element, which was centrally reinforced, are given. The chloride diffusion was symmetrical to the axis, the medium was applied through the central ring area equal to one third of the side surface area while the rest of the surface was isolated. It was shown that the methodology of evaluation and its algorithm allow one to evaluate the concentration field of chlorides in reinforced concrete structural elements under local or asymmetrical action of the chloride - containing medium. The example given illustrates that after a certain time interval critical the concentration of chlorides develops even in protected areas which are located far from the initial damaged area. This means that the corrosion destruction of reinforced elements develops not only in the immediate damage area, but also further away from it.

Reliability-based inspection of prestressed concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pandey, M.D.

1996-03-01

A study was undertaken to develop a reliability-based approach to the planning of inspection programs for prestressed concrete containment structures. The main function of the prestressing system is to ensure the leak integrity of the containment by maintaining a compressive state of stress under the tensile forces which arise in a hypothesized loss of coolant accident. Prestressing force losses (due to creep and shrinkage, stress relaxation or tendon corrosion) can lead to tensile stresses under accident pressure, resulting in loss of containment leak integrity due to concrete cracking and tensile yielding of the non-prestressed reinforcement. Therefore, the evaluation of prestressing inspection programs was based on their effectiveness in maintaining an acceptable reliability level with respect to a limit state representing yeilding of non-prestressed reinforcement. An annual target reliability of 10 -4 was used for this limit state. As specified in CSA-N287.7, the evaluation of prestressing systems for containment structures is based on the results of lift-off tests to determine the prestressing force. For unbonded systems the tests are carried out on a randomly selected sample from each tendon group in the structure. For bonded systems, the test is carried out on an unbonded test beam that matches the section geometry and material properties of the containment structure. It was found that flexural testing is useful in updating the probability of concrete cracking under accident pressure. For unbonded systems, the analysis indicated that the sample size recommended by the CSA Standard (4% of the tendon population) is adequate. The CSA recommendation for a five year inspection interval is conservative unless severe degradation of the prestressing system, characterized by a high prestressing loss rate (>3%) and a large coefficient of variation of the measured prestressing force (>15%), is observed

Light Water Reactor Sustainability Program: Survey of Models for Concrete Degradation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Spencer, Benjamin W. [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States). Fuel Modeling and Simulation; Huang, Hai [Idaho National Lab. (INL), Idaho Falls, ID (United States). Energy and Environment Science and Technology

2014-08-01

Concrete is widely used in the construction of nuclear facilities because of its structural strength and its ability to shield radiation. The use of concrete in nuclear facilities for containment and shielding of radiation and radioactive materials has made its performance crucial for the safe operation of the facility. As such, when life extension is considered for nuclear power plants, it is critical to have predictive tools to address concerns related to aging processes of concrete structures and the capacity of structures subjected to age-related degradation. The goal of this report is to review and document the main aging mechanisms of concern for concrete structures in nuclear power plants (NPPs) and the models used in simulations of concrete aging and structural response of degraded concrete structures. This is in preparation for future work to develop and apply models for aging processes and response of aged NPP concrete structures in the Grizzly code. To that end, this report also provides recommendations for developing more robust predictive models for aging effects of performance of concrete.

Leakage of pressurized gases through unlined concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rizkalla, S.H.; Simmonds, S.H.

1983-01-01

Eight reinforced concrete specimens were fabricated and subjected to tensile membrane forces and air pressure to study the air leakage characteristics in cracked reinforced concrete members. A mathematical expression for the rate of pressurized air flowing through an idealized crack is presented. The mathematical expression is refined by using the experimental data to describe the air flow rate through any given crack pattern. Graphical charts are also presented for the calculation of the air leakage rate through concrete cracks. The concept of equivalent crack width for a given crack pattern is introduced. The mathematical expression and graphical charts are modified to include this equivalent crack width concept. The proposed technique is applicable for the prediction of the leakage from concrete containment structures or any similar structures due to high internal pressure sufficient to initiate cracking. (orig.)

Fiber reinforced concrete as a material for nuclear reactor containment buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mallikarjuna; Banthia, N.; Mindess, S.

1991-01-01

The fiber reinforced concrete as a constructional material for nuclear reactor containment buildings calls for an examination of its individual characteristics and potentialities due to its inherent superiority over normal plain and reinforced concrete. In the present investigation, first, to study the static behavior of straight, hooked-end and crimped fibers, recently developed nonlinear three-dimensional interface (contact) element has been used in conjunction with the eight nodded hexahedron and two nodded bar elements for concrete and steel fiber respectively. Then impact tests were carried out on fiber reinforced concrete beams with an instrumented drop weight impact machine. Two different concrete mixes were tested: normal strength and high strength concrete specimens. Fibers in the concrete mix found to significantly increase the ductility and the impact resistance of the composite. Deformed fibers increase peak pull-out load and pull-out distance, and perform better in the steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) structures. (author)

Biaxial behavior of plain concrete of nuclear containment building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sang-Keun E-mail: sklee0806@bcline.com; Song, Young-Chul; Han, Sang-Hoon

2004-01-01

To provide biaxial failure behavior characteristics of concrete of a standard Korean nuclear containment building, the concrete specimens with the dimensions of 200 mmx200 mmx60 mm were tested under different biaxial load combinations. The specimens were subjected to biaxial load combinations covering the three regions of compression-compression, compression-tension, nd tension-tension. To avoid a confining effect due to friction in the boundary surface between the concrete specimen and the loading platen, the loading platens with Teflon pads were used. The principal deformations in the specimens were recorded, and the failure modes along with each stress ratio were examined. Based on the strength data, the biaxial ultimate strength envelopes were developed and the biaxial stress-strain responses in three different biaxial loading regions were plotted. The test results indicated hat the concrete strength under equal biaxial compression, f{sub 1}=f{sub 2}, is higher by about 17% on the average than that under the uniaxial compression and the concrete strength under biaxial tension is almost independent of the stress ratio and is similar to that under the uniaxial tension.

Aging of concrete containment structures in nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Naus, D.J.; Oland, C.B.; Ellingwood, B.; Mori, Yasuhiro; Arndt, E.G.

1992-01-01

Concrete structures play a vital role in the safe operation of all light-water reactor plants in the US Pertinent concrete structures are described in terms of their importance design, considerations, and materials of construction. Degradation factors which can potentially impact the ability of these structures to meet their functional and performance requirements are identified. Current inservice inspection requirements for concrete containments are summarized. A review of the performance history of the concrete components in nuclear power plants is provided. A summary is presented. A summary is presented of the Structural Aging (SAG) Program being conducted at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory for the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. The SAG Program is addressing the aging management of safety-related concrete structures in nuclear power plants for the purpose of providing improved bases for their continued service. The program consists of a management task and three technical tasks: materials property data base, structural component assessment/repair technologies, and quantitiative methodology for continued service conditions. Objectives and a summary of accomplishments under each of these tasks are presented

Biaxial behavior of plain concrete of nuclear containment building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Sang-Keun; Song, Young-Chul; Han, Sang-Hoon

2004-01-01

To provide biaxial failure behavior characteristics of concrete of a standard Korean nuclear containment building, the concrete specimens with the dimensions of 200 mmx200 mmx60 mm were tested under different biaxial load combinations. The specimens were subjected to biaxial load combinations covering the three regions of compression-compression, compression-tension, nd tension-tension. To avoid a confining effect due to friction in the boundary surface between the concrete specimen and the loading platen, the loading platens with Teflon pads were used. The principal deformations in the specimens were recorded, and the failure modes along with each stress ratio were examined. Based on the strength data, the biaxial ultimate strength envelopes were developed and the biaxial stress-strain responses in three different biaxial loading regions were plotted. The test results indicated hat the concrete strength under equal biaxial compression, f 1 =f 2 , is higher by about 17% on the average than that under the uniaxial compression and the concrete strength under biaxial tension is almost independent of the stress ratio and is similar to that under the uniaxial tension

Experimental investigation of photocatalytic effects of concrete in air purification adopting entire concrete waste reuse model.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Yidong; Chen, Wei; Jin, Ruoyu; Shen, Jiansheng; Smallbone, Kirsty; Yan, Chunyang; Hu, Lei

2018-07-05

This research investigated the capacities of recycled aggregate concrete adopting entire concrete waste reuse model in degrading NO 2. Two major issues within environmental sustainability were addressed: concrete waste reuse rate and mitigation of hazards substances in the polluted air. The study consisted of two stages: identification of proper replacement rates of recycled concrete wastes in new concrete mixture design, and the evaluation of photocatalytic performance of recycled aggregate concrete in degrading NO 2 . It was found that replacement rates up to 3%, 30%, and 50% for recycled power, recycled fine aggregate, and recycled coarse aggregate respectively could be applied in concrete mixture design without deteriorating concrete strength. Recycled aggregates contained both positive attributes ("internal curing") and negative effects (e.g., lower hardness) to concrete properties. It was found that 30%-50% of natural coarse aggregate replaced by recycled coarse aggregates coated with TiO 2 would significantly improve the photocatalytic performance of concrete measured by degradation rate of NO 2 . Micro-structures of recycled aggregates observed under microscope indicated that soaking recycled aggregates in TiO 2 solution resulted in whiskers that filled the porosity within recycled aggregates which enhanced concrete strength. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Calculations of concrete containment tight loss: Studies of a reinforced concrete slab with non uniform thickness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jamet, P.; Berriaud, C.; Humbert, J.M.; Millard, A.; Nahas, G.

1983-01-01

A study was carried out in order to investigate the validity of a concrete model including tensile fracture and strain-softening under compressive loading. Triaxial tests were performed on micro-concrete specimens, and the post-peak behaviour of the material was characterized. The parameters required by the model were therefore obtained. The case of a circular slab loaded up to failure was then considered, in order to compare the numerical results obtained by a finite elements analysis including the concrete model, to the experimental data. (orig.)

Calculations of concrete containment tight loss: studies of a reinforced concrete SLAB with non uniform thickness

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jamet, P.

1983-08-01

A study was carried out in order to investigate the validity of a concrete model including tensile fracture and strain-softening under compressive loading. Triaxial tests were performed on micro-concrete specimens, and the post-peak behaviour of the material was characterized. The parameters required by the model were therefore obtained. The case of a circular slab loaded up to failure was then considered, in order to compare the numerical results obtained by a finite elements analysis including the concrete model, to the experimental data

Sand Cement Brick Containing Recycled Concrete Aggregate as Fine-Aggregate Replacement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sheikh Khalid Faisal

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, the usage amount of the concrete is increasing drastically. The construction industry is a huge consumer of natural consumer. It is also producing the huge wastage products. The usage of concrete has been charged to be not environmentally friendly due to depletion of reserve natural resources, high energy consumption and disposal issues. The conservation of natural resources and reduction of disposal site by reuse and recycling waste material was interest possibilites. The aim of this study is to determine the physical and mechanical properties of sand cement brick containing recycled concrete aggregate and to determine the optimum mix ratio containing recycled concrete aggregate. An experiment done by comparing the result of control specimen using 100% natural sand with recycled concrete aggregate replacement specimen by weight for 55%, 65%, and 75%. The sample was tested under density, compressive strength, flexural strength and water absorption to study the effect of using recycled concrete aggregate on the physical and mechanical properties of bricks. The result shows that the replacement of natural sand by recycled concrete aggregate at the level of 55% provide the highest compressive and flexural strength compared to other percentage and control specimen. However, if the replacement higher than 55%, the strength of brick was decreased for compressive and flexural strength, respectively. The relationship of compressive-flexural strength is determined from statistical analysis and the predicted result can be obtained by using equation ff,RCA = 0.5375 (fc0.3272.

Penetration of gas into concrete during a leakage rate test of reactor containments and its significance for the drop in pressure

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nilsson L.-O.

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The objective of the project described in the paper was to develop a simulation model that describes transient air pressure distribution in concrete in order to see if the leakage rates obtained from the Containment Integrated Leakage Rate Tests can be explained by the transient air pressurization of concrete pores inside the steel liner. A partial differential equation was derived which describes transient air pressure distribution in concrete pores. The model was validated against experimental results. The simulation model shows that there are significant air fluxes into the concrete structures that can explain the pressure drop during a leakage test.

HECLA experiments on interaction between metallic melt and hematite-containing concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sevon, Tuomo, E-mail: tuomo.sevon@vtt.f [VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, P.O. Box 1000, FI-02044 VTT, Espoo (Finland); Kinnunen, Tuomo; Virta, Jouko; Holmstroem, Stefan; Kekki, Tommi; Lindholm, Ilona [VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, P.O. Box 1000, FI-02044 VTT, Espoo (Finland)

2010-10-15

In a hypothetical severe accident in a nuclear power plant, molten materials may come into contact with concrete, causing concrete ablation. In five HECLA experiments the interaction between metallic melt and concrete was investigated by pouring molten stainless steel at almost 1800 {sup o}C into cylindrical concrete crucibles. The tests were transient, i.e. no decay heat simulation was used. The main objective was to test the behavior of the FeSi concrete, containing hematite (Fe{sub 2}O{sub 3}) and siliceous aggregates. This special concrete type is used as a sacrificial layer in the Olkiluoto 3 EPR reactor pit, and very scarce experimental data is available about its behavior at high temperatures. It is concluded that no clear differences between the ablation of FeSi concrete and ordinary siliceous concrete were observed. The ablation depths were small, 25 mm at maximum. No dramatic effects, such as cracking of large pieces of concrete due to the thermal shock, took place. An important side result of the test series was gaining knowledge of the properties of the special concrete type. Chemical analyses were conducted and mechanical properties were measured.

Statistical and Detailed Analysis on Fiber Reinforced Self-Compacting Concrete Containing Admixtures- A State of Art of Review

Science.gov (United States)

Athiyamaan, V.; Mohan Ganesh, G.

2017-11-01

Self-Compacting Concrete is one of the special concretes that have ability to flow and consolidate on its own weight, completely fill the formwork even in the presence of dense reinforcement; whilst maintaining its homogeneity throughout the formwork without any requirement for vibration. Researchers all over the world are developing high performance concrete by adding various Fibers, admixtures in different proportions. Various different kinds Fibers like glass, steel, carbon, Poly propylene and aramid Fibers provide improvement in concrete properties like tensile strength, fatigue characteristic, durability, shrinkage, impact, erosion resistance and serviceability of concrete[6]. It includes fundamental study on fiber reinforced self-compacting concrete with admixtures; its rheological properties, mechanical properties and overview study on design methodology statistical approaches regarding optimizing the concrete performances. The study has been classified into seven basic chapters: introduction, phenomenal study on material properties review on self-compacting concrete, overview on fiber reinforced self-compacting concrete containing admixtures, review on design and analysis of experiment; a statistical approach, summary of existing works on FRSCC and statistical modeling, literature review and, conclusion. It is so eminent to know the resent studies that had been done on polymer based binder materials (fly ash, metakaolin, GGBS, etc.), fiber reinforced concrete and SCC; to do an effective research on fiber reinforced self-compacting concrete containing admixtures. The key aim of the study is to sort-out the research gap and to gain a complete knowledge on polymer based Self compacting fiber reinforced concrete.

Plant Life Management of the EC6 Concrete Containment Structure

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abrishami, Homayoun; Ricciuti, Rick; Khan, Azhar [CANDU Energy Inc., Mississauga (Canada)

2012-03-15

Aging of reinforced concrete structures due to service conditions, aggressive environments, or accidents may cause their strength, serviceability and durability to decrease over time. Due to the complex nature of safety-related structures in nuclear power plants in comparison to other structures, they possess a number of characteristics that make them comparison to other structures, they possess a number of characteristics that make them unique. These characteristics are: thick concrete cross-sections, heavy reinforcement, often one-side access only, subjected to such ageing stresses as irradiation and elevated temperature, in addition to other typical ageing mechanisms (i. e., exposure to freeze/thaw cycles, aggressive chemicals, etc.) that typically affects other types of non-nuclear structures. For a new plant, the Plant Life Management Program (PLiM) should start in the design process and then continues through construction, plant operation and decommissioning. Hence PLiM must provide not only Ageing Management program (AMP) but also provide requirements on material characteristic and the design criteria as well. The purpose of this paper is to present the Plant Life Management (PLiM) strategy for the concrete containment structure of EC6 (Enhanced CANDU 6) Nuclear Power Plant designed by CANDU Energy Inc. The EC6 is designed for 100-year plant life including a 60-year operating life and an additional 40-year decommissioning period of time. The approach adopted for the PLiM strategy of the concrete containment structure is a preventive one, key areas being: 1) design methodology, 2) material performance and 3) life cycle management and ageing management program. In addition to strength and serviceability, durability is a major consideration during the design phase, service life and up to the completion of decommissioning. Factors affecting durability design include: a) concrete performance, b) structural application, and c) consideration of environmental

Plant Life Management of the EC6 Concrete Containment Structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrishami, Homayoun; Ricciuti, Rick; Khan, Azhar

2012-01-01

Aging of reinforced concrete structures due to service conditions, aggressive environments, or accidents may cause their strength, serviceability and durability to decrease over time. Due to the complex nature of safety-related structures in nuclear power plants in comparison to other structures, they possess a number of characteristics that make them comparison to other structures, they possess a number of characteristics that make them unique. These characteristics are: thick concrete cross-sections, heavy reinforcement, often one-side access only, subjected to such ageing stresses as irradiation and elevated temperature, in addition to other typical ageing mechanisms (i. e., exposure to freeze/thaw cycles, aggressive chemicals, etc.) that typically affects other types of non-nuclear structures. For a new plant, the Plant Life Management Program (PLiM) should start in the design process and then continues through construction, plant operation and decommissioning. Hence PLiM must provide not only Ageing Management program (AMP) but also provide requirements on material characteristic and the design criteria as well. The purpose of this paper is to present the Plant Life Management (PLiM) strategy for the concrete containment structure of EC6 (Enhanced CANDU 6) Nuclear Power Plant designed by CANDU Energy Inc. The EC6 is designed for 100-year plant life including a 60-year operating life and an additional 40-year decommissioning period of time. The approach adopted for the PLiM strategy of the concrete containment structure is a preventive one, key areas being: 1) design methodology, 2) material performance and 3) life cycle management and ageing management program. In addition to strength and serviceability, durability is a major consideration during the design phase, service life and up to the completion of decommissioning. Factors affecting durability design include: a) concrete performance, b) structural application, and c) consideration of environmental

Towards Better Understanding of Concrete Containing Recycled Concrete Aggregate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hisham Qasrawi

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The effect of using recycled concrete aggregates (RCA on the basic properties of normal concrete is studied. First, recycled aggregate properties have been determined and compared to those of normal aggregates. Except for absorption, there was not a significant difference between the two. Later, recycled aggregates were introduced in concrete mixes. In these mixes, natural coarse aggregate was partly or totally replaced by recycled aggregates. Results show that the use of recycled aggregates has an adverse effect on the workability and air content of fresh concrete. Depending on the water/cement ratio and on the percent of the normal aggregate replaced by RCA, the concrete strength is reduced by 5% to 25%, while the tensile strength is reduced by 4% to 14%. All results are compared with previous research. As new in this research, the paper introduces a simple formula for the prediction of the modulus of elasticity of RCA concrete. Furthermore, the paper shows the variation of the air content of RAC.

Constitutive model for reinforced concrete

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Feenstra, P.H.; Borst, de R.

1995-01-01

A numerical model is proposed for reinforced-concrete behavior that combines the commonly accepted ideas from modeling plain concrete, reinforcement, and interaction behavior in a consistent manner. The behavior of plain concrete is govern by fracture-energy-level-based formulation both in tension

Experimental investigations and modelling of sodium-concrete interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schultheiss, G.F.; Deeg, H.J.

1990-01-01

The use of sodium as a coolant in liquid metal fast breeder reactors, fusion reactors, and solar plants requires special consideration of its chemical reactivity and related safety problems in the case of sodium leckage. On contact between hot sodium and concrete an interaction takes place resulting in energy release and hydrogen generation, which may contribute to containment loading by pressurization in a hypothetical accident situation. For this reason, sodium-concrete interactions were investigated experimentally and theoretically. The experiments revealed important effects of quartzitic material within the concrete and of the sodium temperature on the interaction mechanisms, the energy release and the consequent hydrogen production. The numerical model shows good agreement with the experimental results. (orig.) [de

Properties of slag concrete for low-level waste containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langton, C.A.; Wong, P.B.

1991-01-01

Ground granulated blast furnace slag was incorporated in the concrete mix used for construction of low-level radioactive waste disposal vaults. The vaults were constructed as six 100 x 100 x 25 ft cells with each cell sharing internal walls with the two adjacent cells. The vaults were designed to contain a low-level radioactive wasteform called saltstone and to isolate the saltstone from the environment until the landfill is closed. Closure involves backfilling with native soil, installation of clay cap, and run-off control. The design criteria for the slag-substituted concrete included compressive strength, 4000 psi after 28 days; slump, 6 inch; permeability, less than 10 -7 cm/sec; and effective nitrate, chromium and technetium diffusivities of 10 -8 , 10 -12 and 10 -12 cm 2 /sec, respectively. The reducing capacity of the slag resulted in chemically reducing Cr +6 to Cr +3 and Tc +7 to Tc +4 and subsequent precipitation of the respective hydroxides in the alkaline pore solution. Consequently, the concrete vault enhances containment of otherwise mobile waste ions and contributes to the overall protection of the groundwater at the disposal site

Corrosion Measurements in Reinforced Fly Ash Concrete Containing Steel Fibres Using Strain Gauge Technique

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. M. Sounthararajan

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Corrosion of steel bars in concrete is a serious problem leading to phenomenal volume expansion and thereby leading to cover concrete spalling. It is well known that the reinforced concrete structures subjected to chloride attack during its service life cause these detrimental effects. The early detection of this damage potential can extend the service life of concrete. This study reports the comprehensive experimental studies conducted on the identification of corrosion mechanism in different types of reinforced concrete containing class-F fly ash and hooked steel fibres. Fly ash replaced concrete mixes were prepared with 25% and 50% fly ash containing steel fibres at 0.5%, 1.0%, and 1.5% by volume fraction. Corrosion process was investigated in an embedded steel bar (8 mm diameter reinforced in concrete by passing an impressed current in sodium chloride solution. Strain gauge attached to the rebars was monitored for electrical measurements using strain conditioner. Strain gauge readings observed during the corrosion process exhibited the volume changes of the reinforcement embedded inside the concrete. The corrosion potential of different steel fibre reinforced concrete mixes with fly ash addition showed higher resistance towards the corrosion initiation.

Concrete as secondary containment for interior wall embedded waste lines

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Porter, C.L.

1993-01-01

Throughout the Department of Energy (DOE) complex are numerous facilities that handle hazardous waste solutions. Secondary containment of tank systems and their ancillary piping is a major concern for existing facilities. The Idaho Division of Environmental Quality was petitioned in 1990 for an Equivalent Device determination regarding secondary containment of waste lines embedded in interior concrete walls. The petition was granted, however it expires in 1996. To address the secondary containment issue, additional studies were undertaken. One study verified the hypothesis that an interior wall pipe leak would follow the path of least resistance through the naturally occurring void found below a rigidly supported pipe and pass into an adjacent room where detection could occur, before any significant deterioration of the concrete takes place. Other tests demonstrated that with acidic waste solutions rebar and cold joints are not an accelerated path to the environment. The results from these latest studies confirm that the subject configuration meets all the requirements of secondary containment

VISCOELASTIC STRUCTURAL MODEL OF ASPHALT CONCRETE

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

V. Bogomolov

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The viscoelastic rheological model of asphalt concrete based on the generalized Kelvin model is offered. The mathematical model of asphalt concrete viscoelastic behavior that can be used for calculation of asphalt concrete upper layers of non-rigid pavements for strength and rutting has been developed. It has been proved that the structural model of Burgers does not fully meet all the requirements of the asphalt-concrete.

Proof testing of CANDU concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pandey, M.D.

1996-05-01

Prior to commissioning of a CANDU reactor, a proof pressure test is required to demonstrate the structural integrity of the containment envelope. The test pressure specified by AECB Regulatory Document R-7 (1991) was selected without a rigorous consideration of uncertainties associated with estimates of accident pressure and conatinment resistance. This study was undertaken to develop a reliability-based philosophy for defining proof testing requirements that are consistent with the current limit states design code for concrete containments (CSA N287.3).It was shown that the upodated probability of failure after a successful test is always less than the original estimate

Mechanical Properties of Fiber Reinforced Lightweight Concrete Containing Surfactant

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yoo-Jae Kim

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Fiber reinforced aerated lightweight concrete (FALC was developed to reduce concrete's density and to improve its fire resistance, thermal conductivity, and energy absorption. Compression tests were performed to determine basic properties of FALC. The primary independent variables were the types and volume fraction of fibers, and the amount of air in the concrete. Polypropylene and carbon fibers were investigated at 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4% volume ratios. The lightweight aggregate used was made of expanded clay. A self-compaction agent was used to reduce the water-cement ratio and keep good workability. A surfactant was also added to introduce air into the concrete. This study provides basic information regarding the mechanical properties of FALC and compares FALC with fiber reinforced lightweight concrete. The properties investigated include the unit weight, uniaxial compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, and toughness index. Based on the properties, a stress-strain prediction model was proposed. It was demonstrated that the proposed model accurately predicts the stress-strain behavior of FALC.

Properties of concrete containing coconut shell powder (CSP) as a filler

Science.gov (United States)

Leman, A. S.; Shahidan, S.; Nasir, A. J.; Senin, M. S.; Zuki, S. S. Mohd; Ibrahim, M. H. Wan; Deraman, R.; Khalid, F. S.; Azhar, A. T. S.

2017-11-01

Coconut shellsare a type of agricultural waste which can be converted into useful material. Therefore,this study was conducted to investigate the properties of concrete which uses coconut shell powder (CSP) filler material and to define the optimum percentage of CSP which can be used asfiller material in concrete. Comparisons have been made between normal concrete mixes andconcrete containing CSP. In this study, CSP was added into concrete mixes invaryingpercentages (0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, 8% and 10%). The coconut shell was grounded into afine powder before use. Experimental tests which have been conducted in this study include theslump test, compressive test and splitting tensile strength test. CSP have the potential to be used as a concrete filler and thus the findings of this study may be applied to the construction industry. The use of CSP as a filler in concrete can help make the earth a more sustainable and greener place to live in.

Capacity of Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessels with Prestressing Loss

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

SMITH, JEFFREY A.

2001-01-01

Reduced prestressing and degradation of prestressing tendons in concrete containment vessels were investigated using finite element analysis of a typical prestressed containment vessel. The containment was analyzed during a loss of coolant accident (LOCA) with varying levels of prestress loss and with reduced tendon area. It was found that when selected hoop prestressing tendons were completely removed (as if broken) or when the area of selected hoop tendons was reduced, there was a significant impact on the ultimate capacity of the containment vessel. However, when selected hoop prestressing tendons remained, but with complete loss of prestressing, the predicted ultimate capacity was not significantly affected for this specific loss of coolant accident. Concrete cracking occurred at much lower levels for all cases. For cases where selected vertical tendons were analyzed with reduced prestressing or degradation of the tendons, there also was not a significant impact on the ultimate load carrying capacity for the specific accident analyzed. For other loading scenarios (such as seismic loading) the loss of hoop prestressing with the tendons remaining could be more significant on the ultimate capacity of the containment vessel than found for the accident analyzed. A combination of loss of prestressing and degradation of the vertical tendons could also be more critical during other loading scenarios

Elastic-plastic constitutive modeling of concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahashi, Y.

1983-03-01

The need to understand concrete behavior under high temperatures in the nuclear industry has become rather accute. For this purpose, a constitutive model of concrete especially developed for this severe environment is indispensable. This report reviews the presently available constitutive models of concrete at standard-temperature conditions and considers their advantages and drawbacks. A rather simple but effective approach is selected to treat concrete behavior at high temperatures. Special emphasis is devoted to the modeling of concrete up to and including failure. The derived constitutive model is checked with biaxial and triaxial benchmark experimental results. Very good agreement is obtained

Physical and mechanical properties of self-compacting concrete containing superplasticizer and metakaolin

Science.gov (United States)

Shahidan, Shahiron; Tayeh, Bassam A.; Jamaludin, A. A.; Bahari, N. A. A. S.; Mohd, S. S.; Zuki Ali, N.; Khalid, F. S.

2017-11-01

The development of concrete technology shows a variety of admixtures in concrete to produce special concrete. This includes the production of self-compacting concrete which is able to fill up all spaces, take formwork shapes and pass through congested reinforcement bars without vibrating or needing any external energy. In this study, the main objective is to compare the physical and mechanical properties of self-compacting concrete containing metakaolin with normal concrete. Four types of samples were produced to study the effect of metakaolin towards the physical and mechanical properties of self-compacting concrete where 0%, 5%, 10% and 15% of metakaolin were used as cement replacement. The physical properties were investigated using slump test for normal concrete and slump flow test for self-compacting concrete. The mechanical properties were tested for compressive strength and tensile strength. The findings of this study show that the inclusion of metakaolin as cement replacement can increase both compressive and tensile strength compared to normal concrete. The highest compressive strength was found in self-compacting concrete with 15% metakaolin replacement at 53.3 MPa while self-compacting concrete with 10% metakaolin replacement showed the highest tensile strength at 3.6 MPa. On top of that, the finishing or concrete surface of both cube and cylinder samples made of self-compacting concrete produced a smooth surface with the appearance of less honeycombs compared to normal concrete.

Towards improved modeling of steel-concrete composite wall elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vecchio, Frank J.; McQuade, Ian

2011-01-01

Highlights: → Improved analysis of double skinned steel concrete composite containment walls. → Smeared rotating crack concept applied in formulation of new analytical model. → Model implemented into finite element program; numerically stable and robust. → Models behavior of shear-critical elements with greater ease and improved accuracy. → Accurate assessments of strength, deformation and failure mode of test specimens. - Abstract: The Disturbed Stress Field Model, a smeared rotating crack model for reinforced concrete based on the Modified Compression Field Theory, is adapted to the analysis of double-skin steel-concrete wall elements. The computational model is then incorporated into a two-dimensional nonlinear finite element analysis algorithm. Verification studies are undertaken by modeling various test specimens, including panel elements subject to uniaxial compression, panel elements subjected to in-plane shear, and wall specimens subjected to reversed cyclic lateral displacements. In all cases, the analysis model is found to provide accurate calculations of structural load capacities, pre- and post-peak displacement responses, post-peak ductility, chronology of damage, and ultimate failure mode. Minor deficiencies are found in regards to the accurate portrayal of faceplate buckling and the effects of interfacial slip between the faceplates and the concrete. Other aspects of the modeling procedure that are in need of further research and development are also identified and discussed.

Current state of knowledge on the behavior of steel liners in concrete containments subjected to overpressurization loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

von Riesemann, W.A.; Parks, M.B.

1993-01-01

In the United States, concrete containment buildings for commercial nuclear power plants have steel liners that act as the intemal pressure boundary. The liner abuts the concrete, acting as the interior concrete form. The liner is attached to the concrete by either studs or by a continuous structural shape (such as a T-section or channel) that is either continuously or intermittently welded to the liner. Studs are commonly used in reinforced concrete containments, while prestressed containments utilize a structural element as the anchorage. The practice in some countries follows the US practice, while in other countries the containment does not have a steel liner. In this latter case, there is a true double containment, and the annular region between the two containments is vented. This paper will review the practice of design of the liner system prior to the consideration of severe accident loads (overpressurization loads beyond the design conditions)

Tensile behavior and tension stiffening of reinforced concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Young Sun; Seo, Jeong Moon

2001-03-01

For the ultimate behavior analysis of containment buildings under severe accident conditions, a clear understanding of tensile behaviors of plain and reinforced concrete is necessary. Nonlinear models for tensile behaviors of concrete are also needed. This report describe following items: tensile behaviors of plain concrete, test results of reinforced concrete panels in uniaxial and biaxial tension, tension stiffening. The tensile behaviors of reinforced concrete are significantly influenced by the properties of concrete and reinforcing steel. Thus, for a more reliable evaluation of tensile behavior and ultimate pressure capacity of a reinforced or prestressed concrete containment building, an advanced concrete model which can be considered rebar-concrete interaction effects should be developed. In additions, a crack behavior analysis method and tension stiffening models, which are based on fracture mechanics, should be developed. The model should be based on the various test data from specimens considering material and sectional properties of the containment building

Assessment of Ultimate Load Capacity for Pre-Stressed Concrete Containment Vessel Model of PWR Design With BARC Code ULCA

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Basha, S.M.; Singh, R.K.; Patnaik, R.; Ramanujam, S.; Kushwaha, H.S.; Venkat Raj, V.

2002-01-01

Ultimate load capacity assessment of nuclear containments has been a thrust research area for Indian Pressurised Heavy Water Reactor (PHWR) power programme. For containment safety assessment of Indian PHWRs a finite element code ULCA was developed at BARC, Trombay. This code has been extensively benchmarked with experimental results. The present paper highlights the analysis results for Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessel (PCCV) tested at Sandia National Labs, USA in a Round Robin analysis activity co-sponsored by Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation (NUPEC), Japan and the U.S Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Three levels of failure pressure predictions namely the upper bound, the most probable and the lower bound (all with 90% confidence) were made as per the requirements of the round robin analysis activity. The most likely failure pressure is predicted to be in the range of 2.95 Pd to 3.15 Pd (Pd= design pressure of 0.39 MPa for the PCCV model) depending on the type of liners used in the construction of the PCCV model. The lower bound value of the ultimate pressure of 2.80 Pd and the upper bound of the ultimate pressure of 3.45 Pd are also predicted from the analysis. These limiting values depend on the assumptions of the analysis for simulating the concrete-tendon interaction and the strain hardening characteristics of the steel members. The experimental test has been recently concluded at Sandia Laboratory and the peak pressure reached during the test is 3.3 Pd that is enveloped by our upper bound prediction of 3.45 Pd and is close to the predicted most likely pressure of 3.15 Pd. (authors)

Ultimate Pressure Capacity of Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessels with Steel Fibers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hahm, Dae Gi; Choun, Young Sun; Choi, In Kil [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2011-10-15

The ultimate pressure capacity (UPC) of the prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV) is very important since the PCCV are final protection to prevent the massive leakage of a radioactive contaminant caused by the severe accident of nuclear power plants (NPPs). The tensile behavior of a concrete is an important factor which influence to the UPC of PCCVs. Hence, nowadays, it is interested that the application of the steel fiber to the PCCVs since that the concrete with steel fiber shows an improved performance in the tensile behavior compared to reinforced concrete (RC). In this study, we performed the UPC analysis of PCCVs with steel fibers corresponding to the different volume ratio of fibers to verify the effectiveness of steel fibers on PCCVs

Material characteristics and construction methods for a typical research reactor concrete containment in Iran

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ebrahimia, Mahsa; Suha, Kune Y.; Eghbalic, Rahman; Jahan, Farzaneh Asadi malek

2012-01-01

Generally selecting an appropriate material and also construction style for a concrete containment due to its function and special geometry play an important role in applicability and also construction cost and duration decrease in a research reactor (RR) project. The reactor containment enclosing the reactor vessel comprises physical barriers reflecting the safety design and construction codes, regulations and standards so as to prevent the community and the environment from uncontrolled release of radioactive materials. It is the third and the last barrier against radioactivity release. It protects the reactor vessel from such external events as earthquake and aircraft crash as well. Thus, it should be designed and constructed in such a manner as to withstand dead and live loads, ground and seismic loads, missiles and aircraft loads, and thermal and shrinkage loads. This study aims to present a construction method for concrete containment of a typical RR in Iran. The work also presents an acceptable characteristic for concrete and reinforcing re bar of a typical concrete containment. The current study has evaluated the various types of the RR containments. The most proper type was selected in accordance with the current knowledge and technology of Iran

Material characteristics and construction methods for a typical research reactor concrete containment in Iran

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ebrahimia, Mahsa; Suha, Kune Y. [Seoul National Univ., Seoul (Korea, Republic of); Eghbalic, Rahman; Jahan, Farzaneh Asadi malek [School of Architecture and Urbanism, Qazvin (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2012-10-15

Generally selecting an appropriate material and also construction style for a concrete containment due to its function and special geometry play an important role in applicability and also construction cost and duration decrease in a research reactor (RR) project. The reactor containment enclosing the reactor vessel comprises physical barriers reflecting the safety design and construction codes, regulations and standards so as to prevent the community and the environment from uncontrolled release of radioactive materials. It is the third and the last barrier against radioactivity release. It protects the reactor vessel from such external events as earthquake and aircraft crash as well. Thus, it should be designed and constructed in such a manner as to withstand dead and live loads, ground and seismic loads, missiles and aircraft loads, and thermal and shrinkage loads. This study aims to present a construction method for concrete containment of a typical RR in Iran. The work also presents an acceptable characteristic for concrete and reinforcing re bar of a typical concrete containment. The current study has evaluated the various types of the RR containments. The most proper type was selected in accordance with the current knowledge and technology of Iran.

Sodium-concrete reaction model development

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nguyen, D.H.; Muhlestein, L.D.; Postma, A.K.

1982-07-01

Major observations have been formulated after reviewing test results for over 100 sodium-concrete reaction tests. The observations form the basis for developing a mechanistic model to predict the transient behavior of sodium-concrete reactions. The major observations are listed. Mechanisms associated with sodium and water transport to the reaction zone are identified, and represented by appropriate mathematical expressions. The model attempts to explain large-scale, long-term (100 h) test results were sodium-concrete reactions terminated even in the presence of unreacted sodium and concrete

Biaxial failure criteria and stress-strain response for concrete of containment structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, S. K.; Woo, S. K.; Song, Y. C.; Kweon, Y. K.; Cho, C. H.

2001-01-01

Biaxial failure criteria and stress-strain response for plain concrete of containment structure on nuclear power plants are studied under uniaxial and biaxial stress(compression-compression, compression-tension, and tension-tension combined stress). The concrete specimens of a square plate type are used for uniaxial and biaxial loading. The experimental data indicate that the strength of concrete under biaxial compression, f 2 /f 1 =-1/-1, is 17 percent larger than under uniaxial compression and the poisson's ratio of concrete is 0.1745. On the base of the results, a biaxial failure envelope for plain concrete that the uniaxial strength is 5660 psi are provided, and the biaxial failure behaviors for three biaxial loading areas are plotted respectively. And, various analytical equations having the reliability are proposed for representations of the biaxial failure criteria and stress-strain response curves of concrete

Flexural Behaviour Of Reinforced Concrete Beams Containing Expanded Glass As Lightweight Aggregates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Khatib Jamal

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The flexural properties of reinforced concrete beams containing expanded glass as a partial fine aggregate (sand replacement are investigated. Four concrete mixes were employed to conduct this study. The fine aggregate was replaced with 0%, 25%, 50% and 100% (by volume expanded glass. The results suggest that the incorporation of 50% expanded glass increased the workability of the concrete. The compressive strength was decreasing linearly with the increasing amount of expanded glass. The ductility of the concrete beam significantly improved with the incorporation of the expanded glass. However, the load-carrying capacity of the beam and load at which the first crack occurs was reduced. It was concluded that the inclusion of expanded glass in structural concrete applications is feasible.

Prestressed concrete nuclear reactor containment structures. Revision 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reuter, H.R.; Chang-Lo, P.L.C.; Pfeifer, B.W.; Shah, G.H.; Whitcraft, J.S.

1975-02-01

A discussion of the techniques and procedures used for the design of prestressed concrete nuclear reactor containment structures is presented. A physical description of Bechtel designed containment structures is presented. The design bases and load combinations are given for anticipated conditions of service. Reference design documents which include industry codes, specifications, AEC Regulatory Guides, Bechtel Topical Reports and additional criteria as appropriate to containment design are listed. Stepwise procedures typically followed by Bechtel for design of containments is discussed and design examples are presented. A description of currently used analytical methods and the practical application of these methods for containment design is also presented. The principal containment construction materials are identified and codes of practice pertaining to construction procedures are listed. Preoperational structural testing procedures and post-operational surveillance programs are furnished along with results of tests on completed containment structures. (U.S.)

Improvement of impact-resistance of a nuclear containment building using fiber reinforced concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jeon, Se-Jin; Jin, Byeong-Moo

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Impact-resistance of a structure can be improved by fiber reinforced concrete (FRC). • Material modeling of FRC is incorporated into finite element analysis of a structure. • A new index for impact-resistance is proposed based on plastic dissipation energy. • A nuclear power plant made of FRC shows improved resistance against aircraft crashes. - Abstract: Since the act of terrorism that occurred in the USA on September 11, 2001, the protection of nuclear power plants against large commercial aircraft crashes has been an emerging issue. Besides the verification of the safety of nuclear power plants in operation or in design, efficient methods for improving the impact-resistance of these structures have been investigated. Fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) has been generally accepted as an effective material for this purpose. In particular, FRC has been developed to improve the tensile behavior of concrete such as tensile strength, ductility and toughness. One of the main fields of application of FRC can be found in blast-protective or blast-resistant concrete structures. It is expected, therefore, that safety-related structures in a nuclear power plant can also be effectively protected from external blast, aircraft crash, etc. by applying FRC. In order to analytically verify the effect on structural behavior of applying FRC, the particular material properties of FRC should be incorporated into the material modeling of a structural analysis program. This study investigates the mathematical modeling of FRC, which represents various aspects of material behavior. Two numerical examples are provided to show the improved impact-resistance of a nuclear containment building that is expected when applying FRC in comparison with ordinary concrete. The analysis results show that the displacement decreases by 43–67% while the impact-resistance increases by 40–82%, depending on a fiber type.

Improvement of impact-resistance of a nuclear containment building using fiber reinforced concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jeon, Se-Jin, E-mail: conc@ajou.ac.kr [Ajou University, 206, World cup-ro, Yeongtong-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 16499 (Korea, Republic of); Jin, Byeong-Moo [DAEWOO E& C, Institute of Construction Technology, 20, Suil-ro 123beon-gil, Jangan-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do 16297 (Korea, Republic of)

2016-08-01

Highlights: • Impact-resistance of a structure can be improved by fiber reinforced concrete (FRC). • Material modeling of FRC is incorporated into finite element analysis of a structure. • A new index for impact-resistance is proposed based on plastic dissipation energy. • A nuclear power plant made of FRC shows improved resistance against aircraft crashes. - Abstract: Since the act of terrorism that occurred in the USA on September 11, 2001, the protection of nuclear power plants against large commercial aircraft crashes has been an emerging issue. Besides the verification of the safety of nuclear power plants in operation or in design, efficient methods for improving the impact-resistance of these structures have been investigated. Fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) has been generally accepted as an effective material for this purpose. In particular, FRC has been developed to improve the tensile behavior of concrete such as tensile strength, ductility and toughness. One of the main fields of application of FRC can be found in blast-protective or blast-resistant concrete structures. It is expected, therefore, that safety-related structures in a nuclear power plant can also be effectively protected from external blast, aircraft crash, etc. by applying FRC. In order to analytically verify the effect on structural behavior of applying FRC, the particular material properties of FRC should be incorporated into the material modeling of a structural analysis program. This study investigates the mathematical modeling of FRC, which represents various aspects of material behavior. Two numerical examples are provided to show the improved impact-resistance of a nuclear containment building that is expected when applying FRC in comparison with ordinary concrete. The analysis results show that the displacement decreases by 43–67% while the impact-resistance increases by 40–82%, depending on a fiber type.

Modelling of molten fuel/concrete interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Muir, J.F.; Benjamin, A.S.

1980-01-01

A computer program modelling the interaction between molten core materials and structural concrete (CORCON) is being developed to provide quantitative estimates of fuel-melt accident consequences suitable for risk assessment of light water reactors. The principal features of CORCON are reviewed. Models developed for the principal interaction phenomena, inter-component heat transfer, concrete erosion, and melt/gas chemical reactions, are described. Alternative models for the controlling phenomenon, heat transfer from the molten pool to the surrounding concrete, are presented. These models, formulated in conjunction with the development of CORCON, are characterized by the presence or absence of either a gas film or viscous layer of molten concrete at the melt/concrete interface. Predictions of heat transfer based on these models compare favorably with available experimental data

Current state of knowledge on the behavior of steel liners in concrete containments subjected to overpressurization loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Riesemann, W.A. von; Parks, M.B.

1995-01-01

In the US, concrete containment buildings for commercial nuclear power plants have steel liners that act as the internal pressure boundary. The liner abuts the concrete, acting as the interior concrete form. The liner is attached to the concrete by either studs or by a continuous structural shape (such as a T-section or channel) that is either continuously or intermittently welded to the liner. Studs are commonly used in reinforced concrete containments, while prestressed containments utilize a structural element as the anchorage. The practice in some countries follows the US practice, while in other countries the containment does not have a steel liner. In this latter case, there is a true double containment, and the annular region between the two containments is vented.This paper will review the practice of design of the liner system prior to the consideration of severe accident loads (overpressurization loads beyond the design conditions).An overpressurization test of a 1:6 scale reinforced concrete containment at Sandia National Laboratories resulted in a failure mechanism in the liner that was not fully anticipated. Post-test analyses and experiments have been conducted to understand the failure better. This work and the activities that followed the test are reviewed. Areas in which additional research should be conducted are given. (orig.)

Aging management of light water reactor concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shah, V.N.; Hookhman, C.J.

1994-01-01

This paper evaluates aging of light water reactor concrete containments and identifies three degradation mechanisms that have potential to cause widespread aging damage after years of satisfactory experience: alkali-silica reaction, corrosion of reinforcing steel, and sulfate attack. The evaluation is based on a comprehensive review of the relevant technical literature. Low-alkali cement and slow-reacting aggregates selected according to ASTM requirements cause deleterious alkali-silica reactions. Low concentrations of chloride ions can initiate corrosion of the reinforcing steel if the hydroxyl ions are sufficiently reduced by carbonation, leaching, or magnesium sulfate attack. Magnesium sulfate attack on concrete can cause loss of strength and cementitious properties after long exposure. Techniques to detect and mitigate these long-term aging effects are discussed

A three-dimensional rupture analysis of steel liners anchored to concrete pressure and containment vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bangash, Y.

1987-01-01

Steel liners or plates are anchored to concrete pressure and containment vessels for nuclear and offshore facilities. Due to extreme loading conditions a liner may buckle due to the pull-out or shearing of anchors from the base metal and concrete. Under certain conditions attributed to loadings, liner metal deterioration and cracking of concrete behind the liner, the liner may fail by rupture. This paper presents a three-dimensional analysis of steel-concrete elements, using finite elements analysis in which a provision is made for liner instability, anchor strength and stiffness, concrete cracking and finally liner rupture. The analysis is tested first on an octagonal slab with and without an anchored steel liner. It is then extended to concrete pressure and containment vessels. The analytical results obtained are compared well with those available from the experimental tests and other sources. (author)

A new model for anisotropic damage in concrete and its application to the prediction of failure of some containment vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Badel, P.-B.; Godard, V.; Leblond, J.-B.

2005-01-01

The aim of this paper is to propose a new model for damage in concrete structures which incorporates such complex features as damage anisotropy and asymmetry between tension and compression, while being expressed in a format well suited for numerical applications and involving a limited number of material parameters which can be determined from standard experiments. A crude version of the model involving a single tonsorial internal variable representing damage in tension, and a single material parameter, is presented first. The predictions of this simple model are satisfactory in simple tension, but not so in simple compression. As a remedy, various refinements are then introduced in a second version of the model involving an additional tonsorial or scalar internal variable representing damage in compression, and five additional material parameters. An example of determination of the model parameters using experimental stress-strain curves in simple tension and compression, plus failure envelopes in biaxial tension/compression, is presented next. The model is finally applied to the numerical prediction of the failure of some containment vessel subjected to some large internal pressure, with a comparison with calculations based on a simpler isotropic variant of the model using a single scalar damage variable. The results illustrate the relevance of models incorporating both asymmetry between tension and compression and anisotropy of damage for simulations of industrial concrete structures. (authors)

Modeling of Corrosion-induced Concrete Damage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thybo, Anna Emilie A.; Michel, Alexander; Stang, Henrik

2013-01-01

In the present paper a finite element model is introduced to simulate corrosion-induced damage in concrete. The model takes into account the penetration of corrosion products into the concrete as well as non-uniform formation of corrosion products around the reinforcement. To ac-count for the non...... of corrosion products affects both the time-to cover cracking and the crack width at the concrete surface.......In the present paper a finite element model is introduced to simulate corrosion-induced damage in concrete. The model takes into account the penetration of corrosion products into the concrete as well as non-uniform formation of corrosion products around the reinforcement. To ac-count for the non......-uniform formation of corrosion products at the concrete/reinforcement interface, a deterministic approach is used. The model gives good estimates of both deformations in the con-crete/reinforcement interface and crack width when compared to experimental data. Further, it is shown that non-uniform deposition...

Concrete structures vulnerability under impact: characterization, modeling, and validation - Concrete slabs vulnerability under impact: characterization, modeling, and validation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xuan Dung Vu

2013-01-01

Concrete is a material whose behavior is complex, especially in cases of extreme loads. The objective of this thesis is to carry out an experimental characterization of the behavior of concrete under impact-generated stresses (confined compression and dynamic traction) and to develop a robust numerical tool to reliably model this behavior. In the experimental part, we have studied concrete samples from the VTT center (Technical Research Center of Finland). At first, quasi-static triaxial compressions with the confinement varies from 0 MPa (unconfined compression test) to 600 MPa were realized. The stiffness of the concrete increases with confinement pressure because of the reduction of porosity. Therefore, the maximum shear strength of the concrete is increased. The presence of water plays an important role when the degree of saturation is high and the concrete is subjected to high confinement pressure. Beyond a certain level of confinement pressure, the maximum shear strength of concrete decreases with increasing water content. The effect of water also influences the volumetric behavior of concrete. When all free pores are closed as a result of compaction, the low compressibility of the water prevents the deformation of the concrete, whereby the wet concrete is less deformed than the dry concrete for the same mean stress. The second part of the experimental program concerns dynamic tensile tests at different loading velocities, and different moisture conditions of concrete. The results show that the tensile strength of concrete C50 may increase up to 5 times compared to its static strength for a strain rate of about 100 s -1 . In the numerical part, we are interested in improving an existing constitutive coupled model of concrete behavior called PRM (Pontiroli-Rouquand-Mazars) to predict the concrete behavior under impact. This model is based on a coupling between a damage model which is able to describe the degradation mechanisms and cracking of the concrete at

Numerical models for prestressing tendons in containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kwak, Hyo-Gyoung; Kim, Jae Hong

2006-01-01

Two modified stress-strain relations for bonded and unbonded internal tendons are proposed. The proposed relations can simulate the post-cracking behavior and tension stiffening effect in prestressed concrete containment structures. In the case of the bonded tendon, tensile forces between adjacent cracks are transmitted from a bonded tendon to concrete by bond forces. Therefore, the constitutive law of a bonded tendon stiffened by grout needs to be determined from the bond-slip relationship. On the other hand, a stress increase beyond the effective prestress in an unbonded tendon is not section-dependent but member-dependent. It means that the tendon stress unequivocally represents a uniform distribution along the length when the friction loss is excluded. Thus, using a strain reduction factor, the modified stress-strain curve of an unbonded tendon is derived by successive iterations. In advance, the prediction of cracking behavior and ultimate resisting capacity of prestressed concrete containment structures using the introduced numerical models are succeeded, and the need for the consideration of many influencing factors such as the tension stiffening effect, plastic hinge length and modification of stress-strain relation of tendon is emphasized. Finally, the developed numerical models are applied to prestressed concrete containment structures to verify the efficiency and applicability in simulating the structural behavior with bonded and/or unbonded tendons

Carbonation of ternary cementitious concrete systems containing fly ash and silica fume

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Eehab Ahmed Badreldin Khalil

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Carbonation is quite a complex physical negative effect phenomenon on concrete especially in the ones containing ternary blends of Portland Cement, fly ash, and silica fume. Nine selected concrete mixtures were prepared with various water to cementitious materials’ ratios and various cementitious contents. The concrete mixtures were adapted in such a way to have the same workability and air content. The fresh concrete properties were kept near identical in slump, air content, and unit weight. The variation was in the hardened concrete mechanical properties of compression and tension strength. The carbonation phenomenon was studied for these mixes showing at which mixes of ternary cementitious content heavy carbonation attacks maybe produced. The main components of such mixes that do affect the carbonation process with time were presented.

Dynamic analysis of steel-concrete structure of TVO power plant containment building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hakala, M.; Karjunen, T.

1996-08-01

The report presents results from a study concerning the ability of the containment to withstand the loads caused by steams explosions which are possible during a severe accident at TVO plant (BWR). In the first phase, the suitability of the engineering mechanics code (FLAC) for modelling the dynamic response of damaging steel-concrete structures was tested by post-calculating a small scale test. As a result, a new dynamic material model taking account the fracture orientation was developed. In containment calculations both the developed and the best generally accepted material model were used. The loads against the containment were obtained from a simple model for steam explosions, which allowed the impulse of the pressure load to be fixed by tuning a few parameters. The ability of the containment to withstand the pressure pulses was analysed with loads of 5, 1 0, 20, 40, 60, and 80 kPa s impulse. As a results, the area and magnitude of permanent damage together with time histories of displacement and stress at critical points are presented. The estimations on the consequences of the observed structural damages as far as the containment leak tightness and stability are concerned and presented as conclusions. (9 refs.)

The durability of concrete containing recycled tyres as a partial replacement of fine aggregate

Science.gov (United States)

Syamir Senin, Mohamad; Shahidan, Shahiron; Syazani Leman, Alif; Othman, Nurulain; Shamsuddin, Shamrul-mar; Ibrahim, M. H. W.; Zuki, S. S. Mohd

2017-11-01

Nowadays, uncontrolled disposal of waste materials such as tyres can affect the environment. Therefore, careful management of waste disposal must be done in order to conserve the environment. Waste tyres can be use as a replacement for both fine aggregate and coarse aggregate in the production of concrete. This research was conducted to assess the durability of concrete containing recycled tyres which have been crushed into fine fragments to replace fine aggregate in the concrete mix. This study presents an overview of the use of waste rubber as a partial replacement of natural fine aggregate in a concrete mix. 36 concrete cubes measuring 100mm × 100mm × 100mm and 12 concrete cubes measuring 150mm × 150mm × 150mm were prepared and added with different percentages of rubber from recycled tyres (0%, 3%, 5% and 7%) as fine aggregate replacement. The results obtained show that the replacement of fine aggregate with 7% of rubber recorded a compressive strength of 43.7MPa while the addition of 3% of rubber in the concrete sample recorded a high compressive strength of 50.8MPa. This shows that there is a decrease in the strength and workability of concrete as the amount of rubber used a replacement for fine aggregate in concrete increases. On the other hand, the water absorption test indicated that concrete which contains rubber has better water absorption ability. In this study, 3% of rubber was found to be the optimal percentage as a partial replacement for fine aggregate in the production of concrete.

The nonlinear finite element analysis program NUCAS (NUclear Containment Analysis System) for reinforced concrete containment building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Sang Jin; Lee, Hong Pyo; Seo, Jeong Moon [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Taejeon (Korea)

2002-03-01

The maim goal of this research is to develop a nonlinear finite element analysis program NUCAS to accurately predict global and local failure modes of containment building subjected to internal pressure. In this report, we describe the techniques we developed throught this research. An adequate model to the analysis of containment building such as microscopic material model is adopted and it applied into the development Reissner-Mindlin degenerated shell element. To avoid finite element deficiencies, the substitute strains based on the assumed strain method is used in the shell formulation. Arc-length control method is also adopted to fully trace the peak load-displacement path due to crack formation. In addition, a benchmark test suite is developed to investigate the performance of NUCAS and proposed as the future benchmark tests for nonlinear analysis of reinforced concrete. Finally, the input format of NUCAS and the examples of input/output file are described. 39 refs., 65 figs., 8 tabs. (Author)

Flexural Behaviour of Reinforced Fibrous Concrete Beams: Experiments and Analytical Modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hameed, R.; Sellier, A.; Turatsinze, A.; Duprat, F.

2013-01-01

Flexural behaviour of reinforced fibrous concrete beams was investigated in this research study. Two types of metallic fibers were studied: amorphous metallic fibers (FibraFlex fibers), and carbon steel hooked-end fibers (Dramix fibers). Four types of reinforced concretes were made: one control (without fibers) and three fibrous. Among three reinforced fibrous concretes, two contained fibers in mono form and one contained fibers in hybrid form. The total quantity of fibers in mono and hybrid forms was 20 kg/m3 and 40 kg/m3, respectively. Three point bending tests were performed according to European standards NF EN 14651 on beams of 150 x 150 mm cross section and length of 550 mm. The results showed that due to positive synergetic interaction between the two metallic fibers used, reinforced fibrous concret (RFC) beams containing fibers in hybrid form exhibited better response at all loading stages. Analytical model to predict ultimate moment capacity of the RFC beam of rectangular section was developed and is presented in this paper. Analytical results for ultimate moment were found to be in good agreement with experimental results. (author)

Radiolytic gas production from concrete containing Savannah River Plant waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bibler, N.E.

1978-01-01

To determine the extent of gas production from radiolysis of concrete containing radioactive Savannah River Plant waste, samples of concrete and simulated waste were irradiated by 60 Co gamma rays and 244 Cm alpha particles. Gamma radiolysis simulated radiolysis by beta particles from fission products in the waste. Alpha radiolysis indicated the effect of alpha particles from transuranic isotopes in the waste. With gamma radiolysis, hydrogen was the only significant product; hydrogen reached a steady-state pressure that increased with increasing radiation intensity. Hydrogen was produced faster, and a higher steady-state pressure resulted when an organic set retarder was present. Oxygen that was sealed with the wastes was depleted. Gamma radiolysis also produced nitrous oxide gas when nitrate or nitrite was present in the concrete. With alpha radiolysis, hydrogen and oxygen were produced. Hydrogen did not reach a steady-state pressure at 137 Cs and 90 Sr), hydrogen will reach a steady-state pressure of 8 to 28 psi, and oxygen will be partially consumed. These predictions were confirmed by measurement of gas produced over a short time in a container of concrete and actual SRP waste. The tests with simulated waste also indicated that nitrous oxide may form, but because of the low nitrate or nitrite content of the waste, the maximum pressure of nitrous oxide after 300 years will be 238 Pu and 239 Pu will predominate; the hydrogen and oxygen pressures will increase to >200 psi

Testing of plain and fibrous concrete single cavity prestressed concrete reactor vessel models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oland, C.B.

1985-01-01

Two single-cavity prestressed concrete reactor vessel (PCRV) models were fabricated and tested to failure to demonstrate the structural response and ultimate pressure capacity of models cast from high-strength concretes. Concretes with design compressive strengths in excess of 70 MPa (10,000 psi) were developed for this investigation. One model was cast from plain concrete and failed in shear at the head region. The second model was cast from fiber reinforced concrete and failed by rupturing the circumferential prestressing at the sidewall of the structure. The tests also demonstrated the capabilities of the liner system to maintain a leak-tight pressure boundary. 3 refs., 4 figs

Fracture Mechanics of Concrete

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ulfkjær, Jens Peder

Chapter 1 Chapter l contains the introduction to this thesis. The scope of the thesis is partly to investigate different numerical and analytical models based on fracture mechanical ideas, which are able to predict size effects, and partly to perform an experimental investigation on high-strength......Chapter 1 Chapter l contains the introduction to this thesis. The scope of the thesis is partly to investigate different numerical and analytical models based on fracture mechanical ideas, which are able to predict size effects, and partly to perform an experimental investigation on high......-strength concrete. Chapter 2 A description of the factors which influence the strength and cracking of concrete and high strength concrete is made. Then basic linear fracture mechanics is outlined followed by a description and evaluation of the models used to describe concrete fracture in tension. The chapter ends...... and the goveming equations are explicit and simple. These properties of the model make it a very powerful tool, which is applicable for the designing engineer. The method is also extended to reinforced concrete, where the results look very promising. The large experimental investigation on high-strength concrete...

Modeling concrete under severe conditions as a multiphase material

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dal Pont, S., E-mail: dalpont@lcpc.f [Division Betons et Composites Cimentaires, BCC-LCPC, 58 Bd.Lefebvre 75738 Paris cedex 15 (France); Meftah, F. [Laboratoire Mecanique et Materiaux du Genie Civil, Universite Cergy-Pontoise, 5 mail Gay Lussac, Neuville-sur-Oise, 95031 Cergy-Pontoise Cedex (France); Schrefler, B.A. [Dipartimento di Costruzioni e Trasporti, Universita di Padova, via Marzolo 9, 35131 Padova (Italy)

2011-03-15

The description as well as the prediction of the behavior of concrete under severe high temperature-pressure loading such as those typical of a loss-of-coolant accidental scenario considered for PWR containment buildings, matter in the study of such engineering applications and are also of interest in other fields such as safety evaluations during fire. The purpose of this paper is to present a flexible staggered finite element thermo-hygral model and then to use it as a numerical tool to determine the temperature and gas pressure fields that develop in concrete when heated.

Steel-concrete bond model for the simulation of reinforced concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mang, Chetra

2015-01-01

Reinforced concrete structure behavior can be extremely complex in the case of exceeding the cracking threshold. The composite characteristics of reinforced concrete structure should be finely presented especially in the distribution stress zone between steel-concrete at their interface. In order to compute the industrial structures, a perfect relation hypothesis between steel and concrete is supposed in which the complex phenomenon of the two-material relation is not taken into account. On the other hand, this perfect relation is unable to predict the significant disorders, the repartition, and the distribution of the cracks, which is directly linked to the steel. In literature, several numerical methods are proposed in order to finely study the concrete-steel bond behavior, but these methods give many difficulties in computing complex structures in 3D. With the results obtained in the thesis framework of Torre-Casanova (2012), the new concrete-steel bond model has been developed to improve performances (iteration numbers and computational time) and the representation (cyclic behavior) of the initial one. The new model has been verified with analytical solution of steel-concrete tie and validated with the experimental results. The new model is equally tested with the structural scale to compute the shear wall behavior in the French national project (CEOS.fr) under monotonic load. Because of the numerical difficulty in post-processing the crack opening in the complex crack formation, a new crack opening method is also developed. This method consists of using the discontinuity of relative displacement to detect the crack position or using the slip sign change between concrete-steel. The simulation-experiment comparison gives validation of not only the new concrete-steel bond model but also the new crack post-processing method. Finally, the cyclic behavior of the bond law with the non-reduced envelope is adopted and integrated in the new bond model in order to take

An approach regarding aging management program for concrete containment structure at the Gentilly-2 Nuclear Power Plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chenier, J-O.; Komljenovic, D., E-mail: Chenier.jean-olivier@hydro.qc.ca [Nuclear Power Plant Gentilly-2, Becancour, Quebec (Canada); Gocevski, V. [Hydro-Quebec Equipment, Structural Dept., Quebec (Canada); Picard, S.; Chretien, G. [Nuclear Power Plant Gentilly-2, Becancour, Quebec (Canada)

2012-07-01

The current paper presents the approach used by the Gentilly-2 Nuclear Power Plant, Hydro-Quebec, in elaborating a specific Aging Management Program (AMP) for its concrete containment structure. It is developed as a part of preparation activities for the plant refurbishment project. The specificity of the AMP consists in addressing Alkali-Aggregate Reaction (AAR) degradation mechanism which is not well known in the nuclear power industry. HQ developed a numerical model based on finite elements for assessing the concrete containment structure behaviour under the impact of AAR and other relevant degradation mechanisms. Such predictions enable a better targeting of corrective and mitigating actions during the second cycle of the G-2 operation while required. (author)

Analysis of failures in concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moreno-Gonzalez, A.

1989-09-01

The function of Containment, in an accident event, is to avoid the release of radioactive substances into the surroundings. Containment failure, therefore, is defined as the appearance of leak paths to the external environment. These leak paths may appear either as a result of loss of leaktightness due to degradation of design conditions or structural failure with containment material break. This document is a survey of the state of the art of Containment Failure Analysis. It gives a detailed description of all failure mechanisms, indicating all the possible failure modes and their causes, right from failure resulting from degradation of the materials to structural failure and linear breake failure. Following the description of failure modes, possible failure criteria are identified, with special emphasis on structural failure criteria. These criteria have been obtained not only from existing codes but also from the latest experimental results. A chapter has been dedicated exclusively to failure criteria in conventional structures, for the purpose of evaluating the possibility of application to the case of containment. As the structural behaviour of the containment building is very complex, it is not possible to define failure through a single parameter. It is therefore advisable to define a methodology for containment failure analysis which could be applied to a particular containment. This methodology should include prevailing load and material conditions together with the behaviour of complex conditions such as the liner-anchorage-cracked concrete interaction

Some Properties of Carbon Fiber Reinforced Magnetic Reactive Powder Concrete Containing Nano Silica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zain El-Abdin Raouf

2016-08-01

Full Text Available This study involves the design of 24 mixtures of fiber reinforced magnetic reactive powder concrete containing nano silica. Tap water was used for 12 of these mixtures, while magnetic water was used for the others. The nano silica (NS with ratios (1, 1.5, 2, 2.5 and 3 % by weight of cement, were used for all the mixtures. The results have shown that the mixture containing 2.5% NS gives the highest compressive strength at age 7 days. Many different other tests were carried out, the results have shown that the carbon fiber reinforced magnetic reactive powder concrete containing 2.5% NS (CFRMRPCCNS had higher compressive strength, modulus of rupture, splitting tension, stress in compression and strain in compression than the corresponding values for the carbon fiber reinforced nonmagnetic reactive powder concrete containing the same ratio of NS (CFRNRPCCNS. The percentage increase in these values for CFRMRPCCNS were (22.37, 17.96, 19.44, 6.44 and 25.8 % at 28 days respectively, as compared with the corresponding CFRNRPCCNS mixtures.

Utilization of crushed radioactive concrete for mortar to fill waste container void space

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishikura, Takeshi; Ohnishi, Kazuhiko; Oguri, Daiichiro; Ueki, Hiroyuki

2004-01-01

Minimizing the volume of radioactive waste generated during dismantling of nuclear power plants is a matter of great importance. In Japan waste forms buried in a shallow burial disposal facility as low level radioactive waste must be solidified by cement or other materials with adequate strength and must provide no harmful opening. The authors have developed an improved method to minimize radioactive waste volume by utilizing radioactive concrete for fine aggregate for mortars to fill void space in waste containers. Tests were performed with pre-placed concrete waste and with filling mortar using recycled fine aggregate produced from concrete. It was estimated that the improved method substantially increases the waste fill ratio in waste containers, thereby decreasing the total volume of disposal waste. (author)

Behaviour of prestressed concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

MacGregor, J.G.; Murray, D.W.; Simmonds, S.H.

1980-05-01

The most significant finds from a study to assess the response of prestressed concrete secondary containment structures for nuclear reactors under the influence of high internal overpressures are presented. A method of analysis is described for determining the strains and deflections including effects of inelastic behaviour at various points in the structure resulting from increasing internal pressures. Experimentally derived relationships between the strains and crack spacing, crack width and leakage rate are given. These procedures were applied to the Gentilly-2 containment building to obtain the following results: (1) The first through-the-wall cracks would occur in the dome at 48 psi or 2.3 times the proof test pressure. (2) At this pressure leakage would begin and would increase exponentially as the pressure increases such that at 93% of the predicted failure load the calculated leakage rate would be approximately equal to the volume of the containment each second. (3) Assuming the pressurizing medium could be supplied sufficiently rapidly, failure would occur due to rupture of the horizontal tendons at approximately 77 psi. (author)

Ageing degradation in the Gentilly-1 concrete containment building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jaffer, S.; Pentecost, S.; Angell, P.; Shenton, B.

2015-01-01

Concrete containment buildings (CCBs) are designed for a service life up to 40 years, but nuclear power plant (NPP) refurbishment can extend service life beyond 60 years. Only limited testing can be conducted on an in-service CCB. The Gentilly-1 (G-1) NPP is in a safe, sustainable shutdown state and the G-1 CCB was available for testing to determine age-related degradation that may be relevant to operating CCBs. Visual observation of the G-1 CCB helped to identify various signs of degradation. However, field testing, via concrete removal, was performed to: (i) examine reinforcing bars and concrete to determine their condition and in-situ stresses and (ii) examine condition of post-tensioned (P-T) wires. The concrete was also subjected to laboratory tests to evaluate its physical, mechanical and chemical properties such as compressive strength, carbonation depth, chloride content and presence of internal degradation. The degradation mechanisms that were clearly visible include macro- and micro-cracking, efflorescence, and weathering. The reinforcing bars in the perimeter wall and dome exposed during the program showed no evidence of active corrosion. Corrosion products were observed on the surfaces of most exposed P-T wires in the perimeter wall, but none were present on P-T wires exposed in the dome. Laboratory testing on the concrete cores extracted from the CCB revealed compressive strength in excess of the design requirements, low carbonation depths (< 10 mm) and no appreciable chlorides. Micro-cracking was observed in the samples recovered from the wall and dome. To date, the observed micro-cracking has had no apparent visible affect on the performance of the CCB concrete. (authors)

Reliability assessment and probability based design of reinforced concrete containments and shear walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, H.; Reich, M.; Ellingwood, B.; Shinozuka, M.

1986-03-01

This report summarizes work completed under the program entitled, ''Probability-Based Load Combinations for Design of Category I Structures.'' Under this program, the probabilistic models for various static and dynamic loads were formulated. The randomness and uncertainties in material strengths and structural resistance were established. Several limit states of concrete containments and shear walls were identified and analytically formulated. Furthermore, the reliability analysis methods for estimating limit state probabilities were established. These reliability analysis methods can be used to evaluate the safety levels of nuclear structures under various combinations of static and dynamic loads. They can also be used to generate analytically the fragility data for PRA studies. In addition to the development of reliability analysis methods, probability-based design criteria for concrete containments and shear wall structures have also been developed. The proposed design criteria are in the load and resistance factor design (LRFD) format. The load and resistance factors are determined for several limit states and target limit state probabilities. Thus, the proposed design criteria are risk-consistent and have a well-established rationale. 73 refs., 18 figs., 16 tabs

Analysis and application of prestressed concrete reactor vessels for LMFBR containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marchertas, A.H.; Fistedis, S.H.; Bazant, Z.P.; Belytschko, T.B.

1978-01-01

An analytical model of a prestressed concrete reactor vessel (PCRV) for LMFBR and the associated finite element computer code, involving an explicit time integration procedure, is described. The model is axisymmetric and includes simulations of the tensile cracking of concrete, the reinforcement, and a prestressing capability. The tensile cracking of concrete and the steel reinforcement are both modeled as continuously distributed within the finite element. The stresses in the reinforcement and concrete are computed separately and combined to give an overall stress state of the composite material. Attention is given to the fact that cracks do not form instantaneously, but develop gradually. Thus, after crack initiation the normal stress is reduced to zero gradually as a function of time. Residual shear resistance of cracks due to aggregate interlock is also taken into account. Prestressing of the PCRV is modeled by special structural members which represent an averaged prestressing layer equivalent to an axisymmetric shell. The internal prestressing members are superimposed over the reinforced concrete body of the PCRV; they are permitted to stretch and slide in a predetermined path, simulating the actual tendons. The validity of the code is examined by comparison with experimental data. (Auth.)

Bonded or Unbonded Technologies for Nuclear Reactor Prestressed Concrete Containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abrishami, Homayoun; Tcherner, Julia; Barre, Francis; Borgerhoff, Michael; Bumann, Urs; Calonius, Kim; Courtois, Alexis; Debattista, Jean-Marc; Gallitre, Etienne; Isard, Cedric; Elison, Oscar; Graves, Herman; Sircar, Madhumita; Huerta, Alejandro; White, Andrew; ); Jackson, Paul; Kjellin, Daniel; Lillhoek, Sofia; Louhivirta, Jari; Myllymaeki, Jukka; Vaelikangas, Pekka; Martin, Jose; Nakano, Makio; Puttonen, Jari; Rambach, Jean-Mathieu; Tarallo, Francois; Smith, Leslie; Stepan, Jan; Touret, Jean-Pierre; Varpasuo, Pentti

2015-01-01

OECD/NEA/CSNI Working Group on Integrity and Ageing of Components and Structures (WGIAGE) has the main mission to advance the current understanding of those aspects relevant to ensuring the integrity of structures, systems and components under design and beyond design loads, to provide guidance in choosing the optimal ways of dealing with challenges to the integrity of operating as well as new nuclear power plants, and to make use of an integrated approach to design, safety and plant life management. The work related to the risks of the loss of pre-stressing force in concrete structures has been in high priority during the activities of the concrete sub-group of WGIAGE. Therefore, the CAPS of WGIAGE: Study on post-tensioning methodologies in containments, was approved by CSNI in June 2009. In this study the two post-tensioning methodologies: bonded and un-bonded methods and their technological features are analysed. In the bonded technology, the tendon cannot slide in its duct due to the cement grouting which is injected after tensioning. In the un-bonded technology, the tendon can slide inside its duct, the corrosion protection is given by grease, wax or dry air. A key point concerning the assessment of durability and safety of prestressed concrete containments is the technology chosen for tendon protection: bonded with cement grout or un-bonded and protected by grease or soft products. The mechanical behaviour of the containment is directly influenced by the adherence of the tendons to the concrete, locally and under high stresses in case of severe accident. The bonded or un-bonded tendons of post-tensioned concrete containment of the Nuclear Power Plants have the major role of containment (balance of the pressure effect during design basis and beyond design accident). Many difficulties around the design, the construction and the in service inspection are related to the tendons. The main goal of the CAPS work was to clarify the consequences and necessary

Advances in the analysis and design of concrete structures, metal containments and liner plate for extreme loads

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stevenson, J.D.; Eibl, J.; Curbach, M.; Johnson, T.E.; Daye, M.A.; Riera, J.D.; Nemet, J.; Iyengar, K.T.S.

1992-01-01

The material presented in this paper summarizes the progress that has been made in the analysis, design, and testing of concrete structures. The material is summarized in the following documents: Part I: Containment Design Criteria and Loading Combinations; Part II: Reinforced and Prestressed Concrete Behavior; Part III: Concrete Containment Analysis, Design and Related Testing; Part IV: Impact and Impulse Loading and Response Prediction; Part V: Metal Containments and Liner Plate Systems; Part VI: Prestressed Reactor Vessel Design, Testing and Analysis. (orig.)

Round-robin pretest analyses of a 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment model subject to static internal pressurization

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Clauss, D.B.

1987-05-01

Analyses of a 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment model that will be tested to failure at Sandia National Laboratories in the spring of 1987 were conducted by the following organizations in the United States and Europe: Sandia National Laboratories (USA), Argonne National Laboratory (USA), Electric Power Research Institute (USA), Commissariat a L'Energie Atomique (France), HM Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (UK), Comitato Nazionale per la ricerca e per lo sviluppo dell'Energia Nucleare e delle Energie Alternative (Italy), UK Atomic Energy Authority, Safety and Reliability Directorate (UK), Gesellschaft fuer Reaktorsicherheit (FRG), Brookhaven National Laboratory (USA), and Central Electricity Generating Board (UK). Each organization was supplied with a standard information package, which included construction drawings and actual material properties for most of the materials used in the model. Each organization worked independently using their own analytical methods. This report includes descriptions of the various analytical approaches and pretest predictions submitted by each organization. Significant milestones that occur with increasing pressure, such as damage to the concrete (cracking and crushing) and yielding of the steel components, and the failure pressure (capacity) and failure mechanism are described. Analytical predictions for pressure histories of strain in the liner and rebar and displacements are compared at locations where experimental results will be available after the test. Thus, these predictions can be compared to one another and to experimental results after the test

Comparison of pre-test analyses with the Sizewell-B 1:10 scale prestressed concrete containment test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R.; Parks, M.B.

1991-01-01

This paper describes pretest analyses of a one-tenth scale model of the 'Sizewell-B' prestressed concrete containment building. The work was performed by ANATECH Research Corp. under contract with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Hydraulic testing of the model was conducted in the United Kingdom by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB). In order to further their understanding of containment behavior, the USNRC, through an agreement with the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), also participated in the test program with SNL serving as their technical agent. The analyses that were conducted included two global axisymmetric models with 'bonded' and 'unbonded' analytical treatment of meridional tendons, a 3D quarter model of the structure, an axisymmetric representation of the equipment hatch region, and local plane stress and r-θ models of a buttress. Results of these analyses are described and compared with the results of the test. A global hoop failure at midheight of the cylinder and a shear/bending type failure at the base of the cylinder wall were both found to have roughly equal probability of occurrence; however, the shear failure mode had higher uncertainty associated with it. Consequently, significant effort was dedicated to improving the modeling capability for concrete shear behavior. This work is also described briefly. (author)

Comparison of pre-test analyses with the Sizewell-B 1:10 scale prestressed concrete containment test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R.; Parks, M.B.

1991-01-01

This paper describes pretest analyses of a one-tenth scale model of the Sizewell-B prestressed concrete containment building. The work was performed by ANATECH Research Corp. under contract with Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). Hydraulic testing of the model was conducted in the United Kingdom by the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB). In order to further their understanding of containment behavior, the USNRC, through an agreement with the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA), also participated in the test program with SNL serving as their technical agent. The analyses that were conducted included two global axisymmetric models with ''bonded'' and ''unbonded'' analytical treatment of meridional tendons, a 3D quarter model of the structure, an axisymmetric representation of the equipment hatch region, and local plan stress and r-θ models of a buttress. Results of these analyses are described and compared with the results of the test. A global hoop failure at midheight of the cylinder and a shear/bending type failure at the base of the cylinder wall were both found to have roughly equal probability of occurrence; however, the shear failure mode had higher uncertainty associated with it. Consequently, significant effort was dedicated to improving the modeling capability for concrete shear behavior. This work is also described briefly. 5 refs., 7 figs

Separate effects testing and analyses to investigate liner tearing of the 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spletzer, B.L.; Lambert, L.D.; Bergman, V.L.

1995-06-01

The overpressurization of a 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment building demonstrated that liner tearing is a plausible failure mode in such structures under severe accident conditions. A combined experimental and analytical program was developed to determine the important parameters which affect liner tearing and to develop reasonably simple analytical methods for predicting when tearing will occur. Three sets of test specimens were designed to allow individual control over and investigation of the mechanisms believed to be important in causing failure of the liner plate. The series of tests investigated the effect on liner tearing produced by the anchorage system, the loading conditions, and the transition in thickness from the liner to the insert plate. Before testing, the specimens were analyzed using two- and three-dimensional finite element models. Based on the analysis, the failure mode and corresponding load conditions were predicted for each specimen. Test data and post-test examination of test specimens show mixed agreement with the analytical predictions with regard to failure mode and specimen response for most tests. Many similarities were also observed between the response of the liner in the 1:6-scale reinforced concrete containment model and the response of the test specimens. This work illustrates the fact that the failure mechanism of a reinforced concrete containment building can be greatly influenced by details of liner and anchorage system design. Further, it significantly increases the understanding of containment building response under severe conditions

Containment Modelling with the ASTEC Code

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sadek, Sinisa; Grgic, Davor

2014-01-01

ASTEC is an integral computer code jointly developed by Institut de Radioprotection et de Surete Nucleaire (IRSN, France) and Gesellschaft fur Anlagen-und Reaktorsicherheit (GRS, Germany) to assess the nuclear power plant behaviour during a severe accident (SA). It consists of 13 coupled modules which compute various SA phenomena in primary and secondary circuits of the nuclear power plants (NPP), and in the containment. The ASTEC code was used to model and to simulate NPP behaviour during a postulated station blackout accident in the NPP Krsko, a two-loop pressurized water reactor (PWR) plant. The primary system of the plant was modelled with 110 thermal hydraulic (TH) volumes, 113 junctions and 128 heat structures. The secondary system was modelled with 76 TH volumes, 77 junctions and 87 heat structures. The containment was modelled with 10 TH volumes by taking into account containment representation as a set of distinctive compartments, connected with 23 junctions. A total of 79 heat structures were used to simulate outer containment walls and internal steel and concrete structures. Prior to the transient calculation, a steady state analysis was performed. In order to achieve correct plant initial conditions, the operation of regulation systems was modelled. Parameters which were subjected to regulation were the pressurizer pressure, the pressurizer narrow range level and steam mass flow rates in the steam lines. The accident analysis was focused on containment behaviour, however the complete integral NPP analysis was carried out in order to provide correct boundary conditions for the containment calculation. During the accident, the containment integrity was challenged by release of reactor system coolant through degraded coolant pump seals and, later in the accident following release of the corium out of the reactor pressure vessel, by the molten corium concrete interaction and direct containment heating mechanisms. Impact of those processes on relevant

Durability of heavyweight concrete containing barite

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Binici, Hanifi

2010-01-01

The supplementary waste barite aggregates deposit in Osmaniye, southern Turkey, has been estimated at around 500 000 000 tons based on 2007 records. The aim of the present study is to investigate the durability of concrete incorporating waste barite as coarse and river sand (RS), granule blast furnace slag (GBFS), granule basaltic pumice (GBP) and ≤ 4 mm granule barite (B) as fine aggregates. The properties of the fresh concrete determined included the air content, slump, slump loss and setting time. They also included the compressive strength, flexural and splitting tensile strengths and Young's modulus of elasticity, resistance to abrasion and sulphate resistance of hardened concrete. Besides these, control mortars were prepared with crushed limestone aggregates. The influence of waste barite as coarse aggregates and RS, GBFS, GBP and B as fine aggregates on the durability of the concretes was evaluated. The mass attenuation coefficients were calculated at photon energies of 1 keV to 100 GeV using XCOM and the obtained results were compared with the measurements at 0.66 and 1.25 MeV. The results showed the possibility of using these waste barite aggregates in the production of heavy concretes. In several cases, some of these properties have been improved. Durability of the concrete made with these waste aggregates was improved. Thus, these materials should be preferably used as aggregates in heavyweight concrete production. (orig.)

Models of transport processes in concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pommersheim, J.M.; Clifton, J.R.

1991-01-01

An approach being considered by the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission for disposal of low-level radioactive waste is to place the waste forms in concrete vaults buried underground. The vaults would need a service life of 500 years. Approaches for predicting the service life of concrete of such vaults include the use of mathematical models. Mathematical models are presented in this report for the major degradation processes anticipated for the concrete vaults, which are corrosion of steel reinforcement, sulfate attack, acid attack, and leaching. The models mathematically represent rate controlling processes including diffusion, convection, and reaction and sorption of chemical species. These models can form the basis for predicting the life of concrete under in-service conditions. 33 refs., 6 figs., 7 tabs

Finite element analysis of degraded concrete structures - Workshop proceedings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1999-09-01

This workshop is related to the finite element analysis of degraded concrete structures. It is composed of three sessions. The first session (which title is: the use of finite element analysis in safety assessments) comprises six papers which titles are: Historical Development of Concrete Finite Element Modeling for Safety Evaluation of Accident-Challenged and Aging Concrete Structures; Experience with Finite Element Methods for Safety Assessments in Switzerland; Stress State Analysis of the Ignalina NPP Confinement System; Prestressed Containment: Behaviour when Concrete Cracking is Modelled; Application of FEA for Design and Support of NPP Containment in Russia; Verification Problems of Nuclear Installations Safety Software of Strength Analysis (NISS SA). The second session (title: concrete containment structures under accident loads) comprises seven papers which titles are: Two Application Examples of Concrete Containment Structures under Accident Load Conditions Using Finite Element Analysis; What Kind of Prediction for Leak rates for Nuclear Power Plant Containments in Accidental Conditions; Influence of Different Hypotheses Used in Numerical Models for Concrete At Elevated Temperatures on the Predicted Behaviour of NPP Core Catchers Under Severe Accident Conditions; Observations on the Constitutive Modeling of Concrete Under Multi-Axial States at Elevated Temperatures; Analyses of a Reinforced Concrete Containment with Liner Corrosion Damage; Program of Containment Concrete Control During Operation for the Temelin Nuclear Power Plant; Static Limit Load of a Deteriorated Hyperbolic Cooling Tower. The third session (concrete structures under extreme environmental load) comprised five papers which titles are: Shear Transfer Mechanism of RC Plates After Cracking; Seismic Back Calculation of an Auxiliary Building of the Nuclear Power Plant Muehleberg, Switzerland; Seismic Behaviour of Slightly Reinforced Shear Wall Structures; FE Analysis of Degraded Concrete

Seismic damage assessment of reinforced concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, HoHyun; Koh, Hyun-Moo; Hyun, Chang-Hun; Kim, Moon-Soo; Shin, Hyun Mock

2003-01-01

This paper presents a procedure for assessing seismic damage of concrete containment structures using the nonlinear time-history numerical analysis. For this purpose, two kinds of damage index are introduced at finite element and structural levels. Nonlinear finite element analysis for the containment structure applies PSC shell elements using a layered approach leading to damage indices at finite element and structural levels, which are then used to assess the seismic damage of the containment structure. As an example of such seismic damage assessment, seismic damages of the containment structure of Wolsong I nuclear power plant in Korea are evaluated against 30 artificial earthquakes generated with a wide range of PGA according to US NRC regulatory guide 1.60. Structural responses and corresponding damage index according to the level of PGA and nonlinearity are investigated. It is also shown that the containment structure behaves elastically for earthquakes corresponding to or lower than DBE. (author)

Computational experiences with variable modulus, elastic-plastic, and viscoelastic concrete models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Anderson, C.A.

1981-01-01

Six years ago the Reactor Safety Research Division of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) approached the Los Alamos National Laboratory to develop a comprehensive concrete structural analysis code to predict the static and dynamic behavior of Prestressed Concrete Reactor Vessels (PCRVs) that serve as the containment structure of a High-Temperature Gas-Cooled Reactor. The PCRV is a complex concrete structure that must be modeled in three dimensions and posseses other complicating features such as a steel liner for the reactor cavity and woven cables embedded vertically in the PCRV and wound circumferentially on the outside of the PCRV. The cables, or tendons, are used for prestressing the reactor vessel. In addition to developing the computational capability to predict inelastic three dimensional concrete structural behavior, the code response was verified against documented experiments on concrete structural behavior. This code development/verification effort is described

Validation of CONTAIN-LMR code for accident analysis of sodium-cooled fast reactor containments

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gordeev, S.; Hering, W.; Schikorr, M.; Stieglitz, R. [Inst. for Neutron Physic and Reactor Technology, Karlsruhe Inst. of Technology, Campus Nord (Germany)

2012-07-01

CONTAIN-LMR 1 is an analytical tool for the containment performance of sodium cooled fast reactors. In this code, the modelling for the sodium fire is included: the oxygen diffusion model for the sodium pool fire, and the liquid droplet model for the sodium spray fire. CONTAIN-LMR is also able to model the interaction of liquid sodium with concrete structure. It may be applicable to different concrete compositions. Testing and validation of these models will help to qualify the simulation results. Three experiments with sodium performed in the FAUNA facility at FZK have been used for the validation of CONTAIN-LMR. For pool fire tests, calculations have been performed with two models. The first model consists of one gas cell representing the volume of the burn compartment. The volume of the second model is subdivided into 32 coupled gas cells. The agreement between calculations and experimental data is acceptable. The detailed pool fire model shows less deviation from experiments. In the spray fire, the direct heating from the sodium burning in the media is dominant. Therefore, single cell modeling is enough to describe the phenomena. Calculation results have reasonable agreement with experimental data. Limitations of the implemented spray model can cause the overestimation of predicted pressure and temperature in the cell atmosphere. The ability of the CONTAIN-LMR to simulate the sodium pool fire accompanied by sodium-concrete reactions was tested using the experimental study of sodium-concrete interactions for construction concrete as well as for shielding concrete. The model provides a reasonably good representation of chemical processes during sodium-concrete interaction. The comparison of time-temperature profiles of sodium and concrete shows, that the model requires modifications for predictions of the test results. (authors)

Water content monitoring for Flamanville 3 EPR trademark prestressed concrete containment. An application for TDR techniques

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Courtois, Alexis; Clauzon, Timothee [EDF DPIH DTG, Lyon (France); Taillade, Frederic [EDF R and D, Chatou (France); Martin, Gregoire [EDF CNEN, Montrouge (France)

2015-07-01

Long term operation of nuclear power plant requires an appropriate monitoring of containment structures. For prestressed concrete containment vessels, a key parameter for ageing analysis is the evolution of the amount of water remaining within the concrete pores. EDF decides to launch a development program, in order to determine what sensor technologies are able to achieve such kind of monitoring on large concrete structures. One of the main parts of this program is to determine the maximum allowable uncertainty for the measurement. Another stake is the calibration process of sensors dedicated to water content measurement in concrete structures and the management of the parameters which have the largest influence on the measurement process.

Leaching studies of heavy concrete material for nuclear fuel waste immobilization containers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Onofrei, M.; Raine, D.; Brown, L.; Hooton, R.D.

1989-08-01

The leaching behaviour of a high-density concrete was studied as part of a program to evaluate its potential use as a container material for nuclear fuel waste under conditions of deep geologic disposal. Samples of concrete material were leached in deionized distilled water, Standard Canadian Shield Saline Solution (SCSSS), SCSSS plus 20% Na-bentonite, and SCSSS plus granite and 20% Na-bentonite under static conditions at 100 degrees celsius for periods up to 365 days. The results of these leaching experiments suggest that the stability of concrete depends on the possible internal structural changes due to hydration reactions of unhydrated components, leading to the formation of C-S-H gel plus portlandite (Ca(OH) 2 ). The factors controlling the concrete leaching process were the composition of the leachant and the concentration of elements in solution capable of forming precipitates on the concrete surface, e.g., silicon, Mg 2+ and Ca 2+ . The main effect observed during leaching was an increase in groundwater pH (from 7 to 9). However, the addition of Na-bentonite suppressed the normal tendency of the pH of the groundwater in contact with concrete to rise rapidly. It was shown that the solution concentration of elements released from the concrete, particularly potassium, increased in the presence of Na-bentonite

Constitutive model for evaluation of nuclear containment structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Gocevski, Vladimir [Hydro-Quebec, 75 Rene-Levesque Boulevard, West Montreal, QC H2Z 1A4 (Canada)

2006-09-15

The paper presents the new constitutive relations for a homogenized reinforced concrete material. Two-stage homogenization procedure is described, i.e. prior to cracking (Phase I) and after cracking (Phase II) of the concrete matrix. Hence, the localization phenomenon and the 'size effect' are properly described. The constitutive law incorporated in the main algorithm of the commercially available finite element code COSMOS/M is further discussed. The model is applied to simulate some relevant aging mechanisms. Therefore, in the proposed paper the assessment of the prestressed concrete aging of the containment structure of Gentilly-2 nuclear power plant using an advanced numerical procedure will be presented. Aging mechanisms considered possible are discussed, the present conditions are assessed and the mechanisms that are likely to impair proper future functioning of the structure are identified. The results of the numerical analysis of the reinforced concrete structure subjected to loads such as thermal and seismic loads are presented and discussed. Attention is given to the analysis of the effects of concrete swelling due to alkali-aggregate reaction. The paper also includes an evaluation of a potential damage in the context of a high velocity impact of a commercial aircraft into the containment structure. (author)

Experimental study of the structural behavior of the reinforced concrete containment vessel beyond design pressure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oyamada, O.; Saito, H.; Muramatsu, Y.; Hasegawa, T.; Tanaka, N.

1990-01-01

The first Advanced Boiling Water Reactor (ABWR) including a reinforced concrete containment vessel (RCCV) is scheduled to be constructed in the 1990s, in Japan. As the RCCV is new to Japan, we performed a trial design, several series of fundamental experiments and partial/total model experiments. This paper presents a summary of the 'TOP SLAB EXPERIMENT' carried out as one of partial model experiments, in which the structural behavior of the RCCV was examined under internal pressure. (orig.)

Selected Aspects of Computer Modeling of Reinforced Concrete Structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Szczecina M.

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The paper presents some important aspects concerning material constants of concrete and stages of modeling of reinforced concrete structures. The problems taken into account are: a choice of proper material model for concrete, establishing of compressive and tensile behavior of concrete and establishing the values of dilation angle, fracture energy and relaxation time for concrete. Proper values of material constants are fixed in simple compression and tension tests. The effectiveness and correctness of applied model is checked on the example of reinforced concrete frame corners under opening bending moment. Calculations are performed in Abaqus software using Concrete Damaged Plasticity model of concrete.

Significance of tests and properties of concrete and concrete-making materials

CERN Document Server

Pielert, James H

2006-01-01

Reflects a decade of technological changes in concrete industry! The newest edition of this popular ASTM publication reflects the latest technology in concrete and concrete-making materials. Six sections cover: (1) General information on the nature of concrete, sampling, variability, and testing laboratories. A new chapter deals with modeling cement and concrete properties. (2) Properties of freshly mixed concrete. (3) Properties of hardened concrete. (4) Concrete aggregates—this section has been revised and the chapters are presented in the order that most concerns concrete users: grading, density, soundness, degradation resistance, petrographic examination, reactivity, and thermal properties. (5) Materials other than aggregates—the chapter on curing materials now reflects the current technology of materials applied to new concrete surfaces. The chapter on mineral admixtures has been separated into two chapters: supplementary cementitious materials and ground slag. (6) Specialized concretes—contains a ...

Analysis of chloride diffusivity in concrete containing red mud

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

D.V. Ribeiro

Full Text Available Red mud is a solid waste produced in the alumina production process and, due to its high pH, is classified as hazardous. Its incorporation in concrete mixtures, acting as filler due to the particles fineness, might be an interesting reuse alternative. The focus of this paper is to study the chloride diffusivity of concrete mixtures containing red-mud. The concentration of chlorides was monitored by measuring the conductivity of the anolyte, which was distilled water initially. In addition, the estimation of the chloride ions diffusion coefficients in steady and non-steady conditions, Ds and Dns, was obtained from the ''time-lag'' and ''equivalent time'' between diffusion and migration experiments. Due to superfine particle-size distribution and the "filler" effect, the red mud addition seems to assure lower chloride diffusivity.

Advanced Numerical Model for Irradiated Concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Giorla, Alain B. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2015-03-01

In this report, we establish a numerical model for concrete exposed to irradiation to address these three critical points. The model accounts for creep in the cement paste and its coupling with damage, temperature and relative humidity. The shift in failure mode with the loading rate is also properly represented. The numerical model for creep has been validated and calibrated against different experiments in the literature [Wittmann, 1970, Le Roy, 1995]. Results from a simplified model are shown to showcase the ability of numerical homogenization to simulate irradiation effects in concrete. In future works, the complete model will be applied to the analysis of the irradiation experiments of Elleuch et al. [1972] and Kelly et al. [1969]. This requires a careful examination of the experimental environmental conditions as in both cases certain critical information are missing, including the relative humidity history. A sensitivity analysis will be conducted to provide lower and upper bounds of the concrete expansion under irradiation, and check if the scatter in the simulated results matches the one found in experiments. The numerical and experimental results will be compared in terms of expansion and loss of mechanical stiffness and strength. Both effects should be captured accordingly by the model to validate it. Once the model has been validated on these two experiments, it can be applied to simulate concrete from nuclear power plants. To do so, the materials used in these concrete must be as well characterized as possible. The main parameters required are the mechanical properties of each constituent in the concrete (aggregates, cement paste), namely the elastic modulus, the creep properties, the tensile and compressive strength, the thermal expansion coefficient, and the drying shrinkage. These can be either measured experimentally, estimated from the initial composition in the case of cement paste, or back-calculated from mechanical tests on concrete. If some

Evaluation of Ultimate Pressure Capacity of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building with Steel or Polyamide Fiber Reinforcement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choun, Youngsun; Hahm, Daegi [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-05-15

Fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) includes thousands of small fibers that are distributed randomly in the concrete. Fibers resist the growth of cracks in concrete through their bridging at the cracks. Therefore, FRC fails in tension only when the fibers break or are pulled out of the cement matrix. For this reason, the addition of fibers in concrete mixing increases the tensile toughness of concrete and enhances the post-cracking behavior. A prevention of through-wall cracks and an increase of the post-cracking ductility will improve the ultimate internal pressure capacity of a prestressed concrete containment building (PCCB). In this study, the effects of steel or polyamide fiber reinforcement on the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB are evaluated. When R-SFRC contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%, the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB can be improved by 17%. When R-PFRC contains polyamide fibers in a volume fraction of 1.5%, the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB can be enhanced by 10%. Further studies are needed to determine the strain limits acceptable for PCCBs reinforced with fibers.

Evaluation of Ultimate Pressure Capacity of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building with Steel or Polyamide Fiber Reinforcement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Youngsun; Hahm, Daegi

2014-01-01

Fiber reinforced concrete (FRC) includes thousands of small fibers that are distributed randomly in the concrete. Fibers resist the growth of cracks in concrete through their bridging at the cracks. Therefore, FRC fails in tension only when the fibers break or are pulled out of the cement matrix. For this reason, the addition of fibers in concrete mixing increases the tensile toughness of concrete and enhances the post-cracking behavior. A prevention of through-wall cracks and an increase of the post-cracking ductility will improve the ultimate internal pressure capacity of a prestressed concrete containment building (PCCB). In this study, the effects of steel or polyamide fiber reinforcement on the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB are evaluated. When R-SFRC contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%, the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB can be improved by 17%. When R-PFRC contains polyamide fibers in a volume fraction of 1.5%, the ultimate pressure capacity of a PCCB can be enhanced by 10%. Further studies are needed to determine the strain limits acceptable for PCCBs reinforced with fibers

Medium strength self-compacting concrete containing fly ash: Modelling using factorial experimental plans

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mohammed Sonebi [University of Paisley, Paisley (United Kingdom). Advanced Concrete and Masonry Centre

2004-07-01

This investigation aims to develop medium strength self-compacting concrete (MS-SCC). The cost of materials will be decreased by reducing the cement content and by using pulverised fuel ash (PFA) with a minimum amount of superplasticizer (SP). A factorial design was carried out to mathematically model the influence of five key parameters on filling and passing abilities, segregation and compressive strength, which are important for the successful development of medium strength self-compacting concrete incorporating PFA. The parameters considered in the study were the contents of cement and PFA, water-to-powder (cement+PFA) ratio (W/P) and dosage of SP. The responses of the derived statistical models are slump flow, fluidity loss, Orimet time, V-funnel time, L-box, JRing combined to the Orimet, JRing combined to cone, rheological parameters, segregation and compressive strength at 7, 28 and 90 days. Twenty-one mixes were prepared to derive the statistical models, and five were used for the verification and the accuracy of the developed models. The models are valid for mixes made with 0.38 to 0.72 W/P, 60 to 216 kg/m{sup 3} of cement content, 183 to 317 kg/m{sup 3} of PFA and 0% to 1% of SP, by mass of powder. The influences of W/P, cement and PFA contents, and the dosage of SP were characterised and analysed using polynomial regression, which can identify the primary factors and their interactions on the measured properties. The results show tha MS-SCC can be achieved with a 28-day compressive strength of 30 to 35 MPa by using up to 210 kg/m{sup 3} of PFA.

The surrounding concrete structure of the containment as a safety component

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Alex, H.; Kuntze, W.M.

1978-01-01

This paper will briefly discuss the containments of the various types of reactors in the Federal Republic of Germany and will try to show the importance of the surrounding concrete structures with respect to safety. It will be seen that the surrounding concrete structures serve in any case - as protection against external events - as secondary shielding and must therefore be considered as a passive safety feature. The design requirements for the surrounding concrete structures with respect to protection against external events and to physical protection generally supplement each other. Reference will be made to possible alternatives, which might result from studies of underground siting of nuclear power plants. Whether or not this type of construction can lead to additional safety can only be judged when the results of all these studies - some of which are still under way - are evaluated. The concluding part of this paper will deal with the responsibilities of the civil engineering supervisory authorities and the nuclear licensing authorities with respect to the surrounding concrete structures. (orig.) [de

Economic aspect comparison between steel plate reinforced concrete and reinforced concrete technique in reactor containment wall construction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yuliastuti; Sriyana

2008-01-01

Construction costs of nuclear power plant were high due to the construction delays, regulatory delays, redesign requirement, and difficulties in construction management. Based on US DOE (United States Department of Energy) study in 2004, there were thirteen advanced construction technologies which were potential to reduce the construction time of nuclear power plant. Among these technologies was the application of steel-plate reinforced concrete (SC) on reactor containment construction. The conventional reinforced concrete (RC) technique were built in place and require more time to remove framework since the external form is temporary. Meanwhile, the SC technique offered a more efficient way to placing concrete by using a permanent external form made of steel. The objective of this study was to calculate construction duration and economic comparison between RC and SC technique. The result of this study showed that SC technique could reduce the construction time by 60% and 29,7% cost reduced compare to the RC technique. (author)

Numerical modeling of hybrid fiber-reinforced concrete (hyfrc)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hameed, R.; Turatsinze, A.

2015-01-01

A model for numerical simulation of mechanical response of concrete reinforced with slipping and non slipping metallic fibers in hybrid form is presented in this paper. Constitutive law used to model plain concrete behaviour is based on plasticity and damage theories, and is capable to determine localized crack opening in three dimensional (3-D) systems. Behaviour law used for slipping metallic fibers is formulated based on effective stress carried by these fibers after when concrete matrix is cracked. A continuous approach is proposed to model the effect of addition of non-slipping metallic fibers in plain concrete. This approach considers the constitutive law of concrete matrix with increased fracture energy in tension obtained experimentally in direct tension tests on Fiber Reinforced Concrete (FRC). To simulate the mechanical behaviour of hybrid fiber-reinforced concrete (HyFRC), proposed approaches to model non-slipping metallic fibers and constitutive law of plain concrete and slipping fibers are used simultaneously without any additive equation. All the parameters used by the proposed model have physical meanings and are determined through experiments or drawn from literature. The model was implemented in Finite Element (FE) Code CASTEM and tested on FRC prismatic notched specimens in flexure. Model prediction showed good agreement with experimental results. (author)

Results of steel containment vessel model test

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luk, V.K.; Ludwigsen, J.S.; Hessheimer, M.F.; Komine, Kuniaki; Matsumoto, Tomoyuki; Costello, J.F.

1998-05-01

A series of static overpressurization tests of scale models of nuclear containment structures is being conducted by Sandia National Laboratories for the Nuclear Power Engineering Corporation of Japan and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission. Two tests are being conducted: (1) a test of a model of a steel containment vessel (SCV) and (2) a test of a model of a prestressed concrete containment vessel (PCCV). This paper summarizes the conduct of the high pressure pneumatic test of the SCV model and the results of that test. Results of this test are summarized and are compared with pretest predictions performed by the sponsoring organizations and others who participated in a blind pretest prediction effort. Questions raised by this comparison are identified and plans for posttest analysis are discussed

Viscoelastic and thermal behavior of structural concrete with reference to containment vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stefanou, G.D.

1981-01-01

A method of numerical viscoelastic stress analysis is described suitable for concrete structures operating at elevated temperatures. The paper describes how approximate numerical methods of elastic analysis of the finite element type can be extended to incorporate the viscoelastic behavior of structural concrete of the quasi-static type. A new eight parameter viscoelastic model is proposed to represent concrete behavior in the loaded and unloaded stage. The deformational expressions for the proposed viscoelastic analogue are also developed. Finally, as a result of courve-fitting procedures, the evaluation of the creep law coefficients are obtained for creep laws appropriate to a test regime. The proposed method is of general application providing that the properties of concrete are assessed reasonably well. The analytical predictions are compared with experimental results obtained on concrete model specimens loaded for 3 1/2 months, at a temperature of 80 0 C. (author)

Absorption Characteristics of Cement Combination Concrete Containing Portland Cement, fly ash, and Metakaolin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Folagbade S.O.

2016-03-01

Full Text Available The resistance to water penetration of cement combination concretes containing Portland cement (PC, fly ash (FA, and metakaolin (MK have been investigated at different water/cement (w/c ratios, 28-day strengths, and depths of water penetration using their material costs and embodied carbon-dioxide (eCO2 contents. Results revealed that, at equal w/c ratio, eCO2 content reduced with increasing content of FA and MK. MK contributed to the 28-day strengths more than FA. Compared with PC, FA reduced cost and increased the depth of water penetration, MK increased cost and reduced the depth of water penetration, and their ternary combinations become beneficial. At equal strengths and levels of resistance to water penetration, most of the cement combination concretes are more environmentally compatible and costlier than PC concrete. Only MK binary cement concretes with 10%MK content or more and ternary cement concretes at a total replacement level of 55% with 10%MK content or more have higher resistance to water penetration than PC concrete.

Modelling reinforcement corrosion in concrete

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michel, Alexander; Geiker, Mette Rica; Stang, Henrik

2012-01-01

A physio-chemical model for the simulation of reinforcement corrosion in concrete struc-tures was developed. The model allows for simulation of initiation and subsequent propaga-tion of reinforcement corrosion. Corrosion is assumed to be initiated once a defined critical chloride threshold......, a numerical example is pre-sented, that illustrates the formation of corrosion cells as well as propagation of corrosion in a reinforced concrete structure....

Examination and testing requirements for concrete containment structures for CANDU nuclear power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

NONE

1993-07-01

This Standard provides the examination and testing requirements that will apply to the work of any organization participating in the construction, installation, and fabrication of parts or components of concrete containment structures, or both, that are defined as class containment. 2 tabs.

Examination and testing requirements for concrete containment structures for CANDU nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-07-01

This Standard provides the examination and testing requirements that will apply to the work of any organization participating in the construction, installation, and fabrication of parts or components of concrete containment structures, or both, that are defined as class containment. 2 tabs

Biaxial Stress Tests of Plain Concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, S.K.; Cho, M.S.; Song, Y.C. [Korea Electric Power Research Institute, Taejon (Korea)

2001-07-01

Containment concrete specimens(4000, 5000psi) were tested under biaxial stress and presented basic physical properties and biaxial failure envelops for the concrete specimens. Failure behaviors of concrete under biaxial stress were assessed with stress-strain responses and failure modes. Here provided real test data to develop nonlinear finite element concrete models. (author). 15 refs., 46 figs., 4 tabs.

Modeling damage in concrete pavements and bridges.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-09-01

This project focused on micromechanical modeling of damage in concrete under general, multi-axial loading. A : continuum-level, three-dimensional constitutive model based on micromechanics was developed. The model : accounts for damage in concrete by...

Experimental investigation on the properties of concrete containing post-consumer plastic waste as coarse aggregate replacement

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zasiah TAFHEEM

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The consumption of various forms of plastic has been increased in recent days due to the boost in industrialization and other human activities. Most of the plastic wastes are abandoned and require large landfill area for storage. More importantly, the low biodegradability of plastic poses a serious threat to environment protection issue. Various methods have been followed for the disposal of plastic in an attempt to reduce the negative impact of the plastic on the environment. Recently, various types of plastic have been incorporated in concrete to minimize the exposure of plastic to the environment. The aim of this study is to investigate the properties of concrete containing polyethylene terephthalate (PET, and high density polyethylene (HDPE plastic that were used as partial replacement of coarse aggregate (CA. In this study, four compositions of stone aggregate(S: plastic waste ratios have been used by volume basis: 100% S: 0% Plastic (control concrete, 90% S: 10% PET, 90% S: 10% HDPE, and 90% S: 5% PET+5% HDPE. The effects of waste plastic addition on the mechanical properties of concrete are presented in this paper. Test results reveal that minimum reduction in compressive strength has been found 35% in case of 10% PET plastic replaced concrete whereas splitting tensile strength for 10% PET replaced concrete has been increased by 21% while compared to control concrete. In addition, fresh unit weight of concrete containing plastic waste has been decreased by 4% in comparison to control concrete.

Corrosion on reinforced concrete structures. An application for the intermediate level radioactive waste container

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arva, Alejandro; Alvarez, Marta G.; Duffo, Gustavo S.

2003-01-01

The behavior of steel reinforcement bars (rebars) for a high performance reinforced concrete made of sulfate resistant portland cement was evaluated from the rebars corrosion point of view. The results from the present work will be used to evaluate the materials properties to be used in the construction of the intermediate level radioactive waste disposal containers. The study is carried out evaluating the incidence of chloride and sulfate ions, as well as, concrete carbonation in the rebar corrosion process. The electrochemical parameters that characterize the corrosion process (corrosion potential [E corr ], polarisation resistance [Rp] and concrete electrical resistivity [ρ]) were monitored on specially designed reinforced concrete specimens. The results up to date (about 1000 days of exposure) reveal that the concrete under study provides to the steel reinforcement bars of a passive state against corrosion under the test conditions. An increasing tendency as a function of time of ρ is observed that corroborates the continuous curing process of concrete. The chloride and carbonation diffusion coefficients were also determined, and their values are comparable with those of high quality concrete. (author)

Sulphuric Acid Resistant of Self Compacted Geopolymer Concrete Containing Slag and Ceramic Waste

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shafiq I.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Malaysia is a one of the developing countries where the constructions of infrastructure is still ongoing, resulting in a high demand for concrete. In order to gain sustainability factors in the innovations for producing concrete, geopolymer concrete containing granulated blast-furnace slag and ceramics was selected as a cement replacement in concrete for this study. Since Malaysia had many ceramic productions and uses, the increment of the ceramic waste will also be high. Thus, a new idea to reuse this waste in construction materials have been tested by doing research on this waste. Furthermore, a previous research stated that Ordinary Portland Cement concrete has a lower durability compared to the geopolymer concrete. Geopolymer binders have been reported as being acid resistant and thus are a promising and alternative binder for sewer pipe manufacture. Lack of study regarding the durability of the geopolymer self-compacting concrete was also one of the problems. The waste will be undergoing a few processes in the laboratory in order to get it in the best form before undergoing the next process as a binder in geopolymer concrete. This research is very significant in order to apply the concept of sustainability in the construction field. In addition, the impact of this geopolymer binder is that it emits up to nine times less CO2 than Portland Cement.

Investigation of Properties of Asphalt Concrete Containing Boron Waste as Mineral Filler

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cahit GÜRER

2016-05-01

Full Text Available During the manufacture of compounds in the boron mining industry a large quantity of waste boron is produced which has detrimental effects on the environment. Large areas have to be allocated for the disposal of this waste. Today with an increase in infrastructure construction, more efficient use of the existing sources of raw materials has become an obligation and this involves the recycling of various waste materials. Road construction requires a significant amount of raw materials and it is possible that substantial amounts of boron-containing waste materials can be recycled in these applications. This study investigates the usability of boron wastes as filler in asphalt concrete. For this purpose, asphalt concrete samples were produced using mineral fillers containing 4%, 5%, 6%, 7% and 8% boron waste as well as a 6% limestone filler (6%L as the control sample. The Marshall Design, mechanical immersion and Marshall Stability test after a freeze-thaw cycle and indirect tensile stiffness modulus (ITSM test were performed for each of the series. The results of this experimental study showed that boron waste can be used in medium and low trafficked asphalt concrete pavements wearing courses as filler.

Cohesive fracture model for functionally graded fiber reinforced concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Kyoungsoo; Paulino, Glaucio H.; Roesler, Jeffery

2010-01-01

A simple, effective, and practical constitutive model for cohesive fracture of fiber reinforced concrete is proposed by differentiating the aggregate bridging zone and the fiber bridging zone. The aggregate bridging zone is related to the total fracture energy of plain concrete, while the fiber bridging zone is associated with the difference between the total fracture energy of fiber reinforced concrete and the total fracture energy of plain concrete. The cohesive fracture model is defined by experimental fracture parameters, which are obtained through three-point bending and split tensile tests. As expected, the model describes fracture behavior of plain concrete beams. In addition, it predicts the fracture behavior of either fiber reinforced concrete beams or a combination of plain and fiber reinforced concrete functionally layered in a single beam specimen. The validated model is also applied to investigate continuously, functionally graded fiber reinforced concrete composites.

Periodic Safety Review of Tendon Pre-stress of Concrete Containment Building for a CA U-Type clear Power Plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Joo, Kwang Ho; Lim, Woo Sang [Korea Hydro and clear Power Co., Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2009-10-15

Generally, as the tendon pre-stress of concrete containment buildings at nuclear power plants decreases as time passes due to the concrete creep, concrete shrinkage and the relaxation of tendon strands, the tendon pre-stress must secure the structural integrity of these buildings by maintaining its value higher than that of the designed pre-stress during the overall service life of the nuclear power plants. Moreover, if necessary, the degree of tendon pre-stress must also guarantee the structural integrity of concrete containment buildings over their lifetimes. This paper evaluated the changes in the tendon pre-stress of a concrete containment building subject to time-limited aging as an item in a periodic safety review (PSR) of Wolsong unit 1, a CANDU-type nuclear power plant to ensure that the structural integrity can be maintained until the next PSR period after the designed lifetime.

Numerical modelling of reinforced concrete beams with fracture-plastic material

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

O. Sucharda

2014-10-01

Full Text Available This paper describes the use of models of fracture-plastic materials for reinforced concrete in numerical modelling of beams made from reinforced concrete. The purpose of the paper is to use of a model of concrete for modelling of a behaviour of reinforced concrete beams which have been tested at the University of Toronto within re-examination of classic concrete beam tests. The original tests were performed by Bresler- Scordelis. A stochastic modelling based on LHS (Latin Hypercube Sampling has been performed for the reinforced concrete beam. An objective of the modelling is to evaluate the total bearing capacity of the reinforced concrete beams depending on distribution of input data. The beams from the studied set have longitudinal reinforcement only. The beams do not have any shear reinforcement. The software used for the fracture-plastic model of the reinforced concrete is the ATENA.

Application of thermodynamics-based rate-dependent constitutive models of concrete in the seismic analysis of concrete dams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leng Fei

2008-09-01

Full Text Available This paper discusses the seismic analysis of concrete dams with consideration of material nonlinearity. Based on a consistent rate-dependent model and two thermodynamics-based models, two thermodynamics-based rate-dependent constitutive models were developed with consideration of the influence of the strain rate. They can describe the dynamic behavior of concrete and be applied to nonlinear seismic analysis of concrete dams taking into account the rate sensitivity of concrete. With the two models, a nonlinear analysis of the seismic response of the Koyna Gravity Dam and the Dagangshan Arch Dam was conducted. The results were compared with those of a linear elastic model and two rate-independent thermodynamics-based constitutive models, and the influences of constitutive models and strain rate on the seismic response of concrete dams were discussed. It can be concluded from the analysis that, during seismic response, the tensile stress is the control stress in the design and seismic safety evaluation of concrete dams. In different models, the plastic strain and plastic strain rate of concrete dams show a similar distribution. When the influence of the strain rate is considered, the maximum plastic strain and plastic strain rate decrease.

Characterisation of concrete containers for radioactive waste in the engineering tranches system at the Yugoslav R.A waste storing center

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Plecas, I.; Peric, A.; Drljaca, J.; Kostadinovic, A.

1987-10-01

Low and intermediate level radioactive waste represents 90% of total R.A. waste. It is conditioned into special concrete containers. Since these concrete containers are to protect safely the radioactive waste for 300 years, the selection of materials and precise control of their physical and mechanical properties is very important. In this paper results obtained with some concrete compositions are described. (author)

A Study on the Evaluation of Field Application of High-Fluidity Concrete Containing High Volume Fly Ash

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yun-Wang Choi

2015-01-01

Full Text Available In the recent concrete industry, high-fluidity concrete is being widely used for the pouring of dense reinforced concrete. Normally, in the case of high-fluidity concrete, it includes high binder contents, so it is necessary to replace part of the cement through admixtures such as fly ash to procure economic feasibility and durability. This study shows the mechanical properties and field applicability of high-fluidity concrete using mass of fly ash as alternative materials of cement. The high-fluidity concrete mixed with 50% fly ash was measured to manufacture concrete that applies low water/binder ratio to measure the mechanical characteristics as compressive strength and elastic modulus. Also, in order to evaluate the field applicability, high-fluidity concrete containing high volume fly ash was evaluated for fluidity, compressive strength, heat of hydration, and drying shrinkage of concrete.

Containment Sodium Chemistry Models in MELCOR.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Louie, David [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Humphries, Larry L. [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States); Denman, Matthew R [Sandia National Lab. (SNL-NM), Albuquerque, NM (United States)

2017-04-01

To meet regulatory needs for sodium fast reactors’ future development, including licensing requirements, Sandia National Laboratories is modernizing MELCOR, a severe accident analysis computer code developed for the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC). Specifically, Sandia is modernizing MELCOR to include the capability to model sodium reactors. However, Sandia’s modernization effort primarily focuses on the containment response aspects of the sodium reactor accidents. Sandia began modernizing MELCOR in 2013 to allow a sodium coolant, rather than water, for conventional light water reactors. In the past three years, Sandia has been implementing the sodium chemistry containment models in CONTAIN-LMR, a legacy NRC code, into MELCOR. These chemistry models include spray fire, pool fire and atmosphere chemistry models. Only the first two chemistry models have been implemented though it is intended to implement all these models into MELCOR. A new package called “NAC” has been created to manage the sodium chemistry model more efficiently. In 2017 Sandia began validating the implemented models in MELCOR by simulating available experiments. The CONTAIN-LMR sodium models include sodium atmosphere chemistry and sodium-concrete interaction models. This paper presents sodium property models, the implemented models, implementation issues, and a path towards validation against existing experimental data.

Constitutive models for concrete and finite element analysis of prestressed concrete reactor vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, P.D.; Anderson, C.A.

1977-01-01

Two constitutive models for concrete are discussed. For short-term loads, the orthotropic variable modulus model is described, and for long-term loads a viscoelastic model utilizing a Dirichlet series approximation for the creep compliance function is summarized. The orthotropic variable modulus model is demonstrated in an analysis of a PCRV head with penetrations. The viscoelastic model is illustrated with a simulation of a prestressed concrete cylinder subject to non-uniform temperatures

Optimization-Based Inverse Identification of the Parameters of a Concrete Cap Material Model

Science.gov (United States)

Král, Petr; Hokeš, Filip; Hušek, Martin; Kala, Jiří; Hradil, Petr

2017-10-01

Issues concerning the advanced numerical analysis of concrete building structures in sophisticated computing systems currently require the involvement of nonlinear mechanics tools. The efforts to design safer, more durable and mainly more economically efficient concrete structures are supported via the use of advanced nonlinear concrete material models and the geometrically nonlinear approach. The application of nonlinear mechanics tools undoubtedly presents another step towards the approximation of the real behaviour of concrete building structures within the framework of computer numerical simulations. However, the success rate of this application depends on having a perfect understanding of the behaviour of the concrete material models used and having a perfect understanding of the used material model parameters meaning. The effective application of nonlinear concrete material models within computer simulations often becomes very problematic because these material models very often contain parameters (material constants) whose values are difficult to obtain. However, getting of the correct values of material parameters is very important to ensure proper function of a concrete material model used. Today, one possibility, which permits successful solution of the mentioned problem, is the use of optimization algorithms for the purpose of the optimization-based inverse material parameter identification. Parameter identification goes hand in hand with experimental investigation while it trying to find parameter values of the used material model so that the resulting data obtained from the computer simulation will best approximate the experimental data. This paper is focused on the optimization-based inverse identification of the parameters of a concrete cap material model which is known under the name the Continuous Surface Cap Model. Within this paper, material parameters of the model are identified on the basis of interaction between nonlinear computer simulations

Model techniques for testing heated concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stefanou, G.D.

1983-01-01

Experimental techniques are described which may be used in the laboratory to measure strains of model concrete structures representing to scale actual structures of any shape or geometry, operating at elevated temperatures, for which time-dependent creep and shrinkage strains are dominant. These strains could be used to assess the distribution of stress in the scaled structure and hence to predict the actual behaviour of concrete structures used in nuclear power stations. Similar techniques have been employed in an investigation to measure elastic, thermal, creep and shrinkage strains in heated concrete models representing to scale parts of prestressed concrete pressure vessels for nuclear reactors. (author)

Mechanical Properties of High Performance Concrete Containing Waste Plastic as Aggregate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Abdulkader Ismail Al-Hadithi

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The world's population growth and the increasing demand for new infrastructure facilities and buildings , present us with the vision of a higher resources consumption, specially in the form of more durable concrete such as High Performance Concrete (HPC . Moreover , the growth of the world pollution by plastic waste has been tremendous. The aim of this research is to investigate the change in mechanical properties of HPC with added waste plastics in concrete. For this purpose 2.5%, 5% and 7.5% in volume of natural fine aggregate in the HPC mixes were replaced by an equal volume of Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET waste , got by shredded PET bottles. The mechanical properties (compressive, splitting tensile, and flexural strength evaluated at the ages of (7 ,28, 56 and 91 days while the static modulus of elasticity tested at (28 and 91 days . The results indicated that HPC containing PET-aggregate presented lower compressive strength and static elasticity . The splitting strength displayed an arising trend at the initial stages, however, they have a tendency to decrease after a while. On the other hand, flexural strength results gave better modulus of rapture at all ages of curing , as compared with reference concrete specimens.

Modeling moisture ingress through simplified concrete crack geometries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pease, Bradley Justin; Michel, Alexander; Geiker, Mette Rica

2011-01-01

, considered to have two parts; 1) a coalesced crack length which behaves as a free-surface for moisture ingress, and 2) an isolated microcracking length which resists ingress similarly to the bulk material. Transport model results are compared to experimental results from steel fibre reinforced concrete wedge......This paper introduces a numerical model for ingress in cracked steel fibre reinforced concrete. Details of a simplified crack are preset in the model’s geometry using the cracked hinge model (CHM). The total crack length estimated using the CHM was, based on earlier work on conventional concrete...... on moisture ingress. Results from the transport model indicate the length of the isolated microcracks was approximately 19 mm for the investigated concrete composition....

Proceedings of the CSNI workshop on International Standard Problem 48 - Analysis of 1:4-scale prestressed concrete containment vessel model under severe accident conditions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

2005-01-01

At the CSNI meeting in June 2002, the proposal for an International Standard Problem on containment integrity (ISP 48) based on the NRC/NUPEC/Sandia test was approved. Objectives were to extend the understanding of capacities of actual containment structures based on results of the recent PCCV Model test and other previous research. The ISP was sponsored by the USNRC, and results had been made available thanks to NUPEC and to the USNRC. Sandia National Laboratory was contracted to manage the technical aspects of the ISP. At the end of the ISP48, a workshop was organized in Lyon, France on April 6-7, 2005 hosted by Electricite de France. Its overall objective was to present results obtained by participants in the ISP 48 and to assess the current practices and the state of the art with respect to the calculation of concrete structures under severe accident conditions. Experience from other areas in civil engineering related to the modelling of complex structures was greatly beneficial to all. Information obtained as a result of this assessment were utilized to develop a consensus on these calculations and identify issues or 'gaps' in the present knowledge for the primary purpose of formulating and prioritizing research needs on this topic. The ISP48 exercise was published in the report referenced NEA/CSNI/R(2005)5 in 3 volumes. Volume 1 contains the synthesis of the exercise; Volumes 2 and 3 contain individual contributions of participating organizations. The CSNI Working Group on the Integrity and Ageing and in particular its sub-group on the behaviour of concrete structures has produced extensive material over the last few years. The complete list of references is given in this document. These proceedings gather the papers and presentations given by the participants at the Lyon workshop

The construction features of the deformation and force model of concrete and reinforced concrete resistance

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Romashko Vasyl

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The main features of the deformation and force model of deformation of reinforced concrete elements and structures based on generalized diagrams of their state are considered in the article. Particular attention is focused on the basic methodological problems and shortcomings of modern "deformation" models. It is shown that in the most cases these problems can be solved by the generalized diagrams of reinforced concrete elements and structures real state. Thanks to these diagrams, the developed method: provides a single methodological approach to the calculation of reinforced concrete elements and structures normal sections for limit states; allows to reveal the internal static indeterminacy of heterogeneously deformable elements and structures in their ultimate limit state calculation; justifies the application of the basic and derived criteria of reinforced concrete elements and structures bearing capacity exhaustion; retains the essence of the physical processes of concrete and reinforced concrete structures deformation. The defining positions of the generalized (universal methodology for calculating reinforced concrete elements and structures are stated.

Integrity assessment of grouted posttensioning cables and reinforced concrete of a nuclear containment building

Science.gov (United States)

Philipose, K.; Shenton, B.

2011-04-01

The Containment Buildings of CANDU Nuclear Generating Stations were designed to house nuclear reactors and process equipment and also to provide confinement of releases from a potential nuclear accident such as a Loss Of Coolant Accident (LOCA). To meet this design requirement, a post-tensioning system was designed to induce compressive stresses in the structure to counteract the internal design pressure. The CANDU reactor building at Gentilly-1 (G-1), Quebec, Canada (250 MWe) was built in the early 1970s and is currently in a decommissioned state. The structure at present is under surveillance and monitoring. In the year 2000, a field investigation was conducted as part of a condition assessment and corrosion was detected in some of the grouted post-tension cable strands. However, no further work was done at that time to determine the cause, nature, impact and extent of the corrosion. An investigation of the Gentilly-1 containment building is currently underway to assess the condition of grouted post-tensioning cables and reinforced concrete. At two selected locations, concrete and steel reinforcements were removed from the containment building wall to expose horizontal cables. Individual cable strands and reinforcement bars were instrumented and measurements were taken in-situ before removing them for forensic examination and destructive testing to determine the impact of ageing and corrosion. Concrete samples were also removed and tested in a laboratory. The purpose of the field investigation and laboratory testing, using this structure as a test bed, was also to collect material ageing data and to develop potential Nondestructive Examination (NDE) methods to monitor Containment Building Integrity. The paper describes the field work conducted and the test results obtained for concrete, reinforcement and post-tensioning cables.

Integrity assessment of grouted posttensioning cables and reinforced concrete of a nuclear containment building

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shenton B.

2011-04-01

Full Text Available The Containment Buildings of CANDU Nuclear Generating Stations were designed to house nuclear reactors and process equipment and also to provide confinement of releases from a potential nuclear accident such as a Loss Of Coolant Accident (LOCA. To meet this design requirement, a post-tensioning system was designed to induce compressive stresses in the structure to counteract the internal design pressure. The CANDU reactor building at Gentilly-1 (G-1, Quebec, Canada (250 MWe was built in the early 1970s and is currently in a decommissioned state. The structure at present is under surveillance and monitoring. In the year 2000, a field investigation was conducted as part of a condition assessment and corrosion was detected in some of the grouted post-tension cable strands. However, no further work was done at that time to determine the cause, nature, impact and extent of the corrosion. An investigation of the Gentilly-1 containment building is currently underway to assess the condition of grouted post-tensioning cables and reinforced concrete. At two selected locations, concrete and steel reinforcements were removed from the containment building wall to expose horizontal cables. Individual cable strands and reinforcement bars were instrumented and measurements were taken in-situ before removing them for forensic examination and destructive testing to determine the impact of ageing and corrosion. Concrete samples were also removed and tested in a laboratory. The purpose of the field investigation and laboratory testing, using this structure as a test bed, was also to collect material ageing data and to develop potential Nondestructive Examination (NDE methods to monitor Containment Building Integrity. The paper describes the field work conducted and the test results obtained for concrete, reinforcement and post-tensioning cables.

Method for calculating the duration of vacuum drying of a metal-concrete container for spent nuclear fuel

Science.gov (United States)

Karyakin, Yu. E.; Nekhozhin, M. A.; Pletnev, A. A.

2013-07-01

A method for calculating the quantity of moisture in a metal-concrete container in the process of its charging with spent nuclear fuel is proposed. A computing method and results obtained by it for conservative estimation of the time of vacuum drying of a container charged with spent nuclear fuel by technologies with quantization and without quantization of the lower fuel element cluster are presented. It has been shown that the absence of quantization in loading spent fuel increases several times the time of vacuum drying of the metal-concrete container.

Research status and needs for shear tests on large-scale reinforced concrete containment elements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oesterle, R.G.; Russell, H.G.

1982-01-01

Reinforced concrete containments at nuclear power plants are designed to resist forces caused by internal pressure, gravity, and severe earthquakes. The size, shape, and possible stress states in containments produce unique problems for design and construction. A lack of experimental data on the capacity of reinforced concrete to transfer shear stresses while subjected to biaxial tension has led to cumbersome if not impractical design criteria. Research programs recently conducted at the Construction Technology Laboratories and at Cornell University indicate that design criteria for tangential, peripheral, and radial shear are conservative. This paper discusses results from recent research and presents tentative changes for shear design provisions of the current United States code for containment structures. Areas where information is still lacking to fully verify new design provisions are discussed. Needs for further experimental research on large-scale specimens to develop economical, practical, and reliable design criteria for resisting shear forces in containment are identified. (orig.)

Pre-operational proof and leakage rate testing requirements for concrete containment structures for CANDU nuclear power plants

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1994-02-01

This Standard provides the requirements for pre-operational proof tests and leakage rate tests of concrete containment structures of a containment system designed as Class Containment components. 1 fig

Civil engineering: EDF needs for concrete modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Didry, O.; Gerard, B.; Bui, D.

1997-01-01

Concrete structures which are encountered at EDF, like all civil engineering structures, age. In order to adapt the maintenance conditions of these structures, particularly to extend their service life, and also to prepare constructions of future structures, tools for predicting the behaviour of these structures in their environment should be available. For EDF the technical risks are high and consequently very appropriate R and D actions are required. In this context the Direction des Etudes et Recherches (DER) has developed a methodology for analysing concrete structure behaviour modelling. This approach has several aims: - making a distinction between the problems which refer to the existing models and those which require R and D; - displaying disciplinary links between different problems encountered on EDF structures (non-linear mechanical, chemical - hydraulic - mechanical coupling, etc); - listing of the existing tools and positioning the DER 'Aster' finite element code among them. This document is a state of the art of scientific knowledge intended to shed light on the fields in which one should be involved when there is, on one part a strong requirement on the side of structure operators, and on the other one, the present tools do not allow this requirement to be satisfactorily met. The analysis has been done on 12 scientific subjects: 1) Hydration of concrete at early ages: exothermicity, hardening, autogenous shrinkage; 2) Drying and drying shrinkage; 3) Alkali-silica reaction and bulky stage formation; 4) Long term deterioration by leaching; 5) Ionic diffusion and associated attacks: the chlorides case; 6) Permeability / tightness of concrete; 7) Concretes -nonlinear behaviour and cracking (I): contribution of the plasticity models; 8) Concretes - nonlinear behaviour and cracking (II): contribution of the damage models; 9) Concretes - nonlinear behaviour and cracking (III): the contribution of the probabilistic analysis model; 10) Delayed behaviour of

Experimental study of the leakage rate through cracked reinforced concrete wall elements for defining the functional failure criteria of containment buildings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Young Sun; Cho, Nam So

2004-01-01

Containment buildings in nuclear power plants should maintain their structural safety as well as their functional integrity during an operation period. To maintain the functional integrity, the wall and dome of the containment buildings have to maintain their air tightness under extreme loading conditions such as earthquakes, missile impact, and severe accidents. For evaluating the functional failure of containments, it is important to predict the leak amount through cracked concrete walls. The leakage through concrete cracks has been studied since 1972. Buss examined the flow rate of air through a pre-existing crack in a slab under air pressure. Rizkalla el al. initiated an experimental study for the leakage of prestressed concrete building segments under uniaxial and biaxial loadings to simulate the loading condition of containment buildings under an internal pressure. Recently, Salmon el al. initiated an experimental program for determining the leak rates in typical reinforced concrete shear walls subjected to beyond design basis earthquakes. This study investigates the cracking behavior of reinforced concrete containment wall elements under a uniaxial tension and addresses the outline of the leakage test for unlined containment wall elements

Modelling of the Deterioration of Reinforced Concrete Structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thoft-Christensen, Palle

Stochastic modelling of the deterioration of reinforced concrete structures is addressed in this paper on basis of a detailed modelling of corrosion initiation and corrosion cracking. It is proposed that modelling of the deterioration of concrete should be based on a sound understanding...... of the physical and chemical properties of the concrete. The relationship between rebar corrosion and crack width is investigated. A new service life definition based on evolution of the corrosion crack width is proposed....

Experiences in development, qualification, and use of concrete high-integrity containers in commercial disposal of radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmitt, R.C.; Reno, H.W.

1985-01-01

Disposal of EPICOR prefilters as commercial radioactive wastes is being accomplished by using a first-of-a-kind, reinforced concrete, high-integrity container in lieu of prior in situ solidification of resins before disposal of prefilters. Experiences in developing, testing, certifying, and using high-integrity containers are an untold story worthy of review for the benefit of the nuclear industry at large. The lessons learned in gaining regulatory acceptance of the concrete HIC are discussed

Seismic reliability assessment methodology for CANDU concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stephens, M.J.; Nessim, M.A.; Hong, H.P.

1995-05-01

A study was undertaken to develop a reliability-based methodology for the assessment of existing CANDU concrete containment structures with respect to seismic loading. The focus of the study was on defining appropriate specified values and partial safety factors for earthquake loading and resistance parameters. Key issues addressed in the work were the identification of an approach to select design earthquake spectra that satisfy consistent safety levels, and the use of structure-specific data in the evaluation of structural resistance. (author). 23 refs., 9 tabs., 15 figs

Numerical Simulation of Recycled Concrete Using Convex Aggregate Model and Base Force Element Method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yijiang Peng

2016-01-01

Full Text Available By using the Base Force Element Method (BFEM on potential energy principle, a new numerical concrete model, random convex aggregate model, is presented in this paper to simulate the experiment under uniaxial compression for recycled aggregate concrete (RAC which can also be referred to as recycled concrete. This model is considered as a heterogeneous composite which is composed of five mediums, including natural coarse aggregate, old mortar, new mortar, new interfacial transition zone (ITZ, and old ITZ. In order to simulate the damage processes of RAC, a curve damage model was adopted as the damage constitutive model and the strength theory of maximum tensile strain was used as the failure criterion in the BFEM on mesomechanics. The numerical results obtained in this paper which contained the uniaxial compressive strengths, size effects on strength, and damage processes of RAC are in agreement with experimental observations. The research works show that the random convex aggregate model and the BFEM with the curve damage model can be used for simulating the relationship between microstructure and mechanical properties of RAC.

Constitutive Models for Design of Sustainable Concrete Structures

Science.gov (United States)

Brozovsky, J.; Cajka, R.; Koktan, J.

2018-04-01

The paper deals with numerical models of reinforced concrete which are expected to be useful to enhance design of sustainable reinforced concrete structures. That is, the models which can deliver higher precision of results than the linear elastic models but which are still feasible for engineering practice. Such models can be based on an elastic-plastic material. The paper discusses properties of such models. A material model based of the Chen criteria and the Ohtani hardening model for concrete was selected for further development. There is also given a comparison of behaviour of such model with behaviour of a more complex smeared crack model which is based on principles of fracture mechanics.

A micromechanical four-phase model to predict the compressive failure surface of cement concrete

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. Caporale,

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In this work, a micromechanical model is used in order to predict the failure surface of cement concrete subject to multi-axial compression. In the adopted model, the concrete material is schematised as a composite with the following constituents: coarse aggregate (gravel, fine aggregate (sand and cement paste. The cement paste contains some voids which grow during the loading process. In fact, the non-linear behavior of the concrete is attributed to the creation of cracks in the cement paste; the effect of the cracks is taken into account by introducing equivalent voids (inclusions with zero stiffness in the cement paste. The three types of inclusions (namely gravel, sand and voids have different scales, so that the overall behavior of the concrete is obtained by the composition of three different homogenizations; in the sense that the concrete is regarded as the homogenized material of the two-phase composite constituted of the gravel and the mortar; in turn, the mortar is the homogenized material of the two-phase composite constituted of the sand inclusions and a (porous cement paste matrix; finally, the (porous cement paste is the homogenized material of the two-phase composite constituted of voids and the pure paste. The pure paste represents the cement paste before the loading process, so that it does not contain voids or other defects due to the loading process. The abovementioned three homogenizations are realized with the predictive scheme of Mori-Tanaka in conjunction with the Eshelby method. The adopted model can be considered an attempt to find micromechanical tools able to capture peculiar aspects of the cement concrete in load cases of uni-axial and multi-axial compression. Attributing the non-linear behavior of concrete to the creation of equivalent voids in the cement paste provides correspondence with many phenomenological aspects of concrete behavior. Trying to improve this correspondence, the influence of the parameters of the

Finite element analysis of prestressed concrete reactor vessels

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Smith, P.D.; Cook, W.A.; Anderson, C.A.

1977-01-01

Several present and proposed gas-cooled reactors use concrete pressure vessels. In addition, concrete is almost universally used for the secondary containment structures of water-cooled reactors. Regulatory agencies must have means of assuring that these concrete structures perform their containment functions during normal operation and after extreme conditions of transient overpressure and high temperature. The NONSAP nonlinear structural analysis program has been extensively modified to provide one analytical means of assessing the safety of reinforced concrete pressure vessels and containments. Several structural analysis codes were studied to evaluate their ability to model the nonlinear static and dynamic behavior of three-dimensional structures. The NONSAP code was selected because of its availability and because of the ease with which it can be modified. In particular, the modular structure of this code allows ready addition of specialized material models. Major modifications have been the development of pre- and post-processors for mesh generation and graphics, the addition of an out-of-core solver, and the addition of constitutive models for reinforced concrete subject to either long-term or short-term loads. Emphasis was placed on development of a three-dimensional analysis capability

Influence of Steel Fibers on the Structural Performance of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Youngsun; Hahm, Daegi; Park, Junhee

2013-01-01

A large number of previous experimental investigations indicate that the use of steel fibers in conventional reinforced concrete (RC) can enhance the structural and functional performance of prestressed concrete containment buildings (PCCBs) in nuclear power plants. A prevention of through-wall cracks and an increase of the post-cracking ductility will improve the ultimate internal pressure capacity, and a high shear resistance under cyclic loadings will increase the seismic resisting capacity. In this study, the effects of steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) on the ultimate pressure and seismic capacities of a PCCB are investigated. The effects of steel fibers on the ultimate pressure and shear resisting capacities of a PCCB are investigated. It is revealed that both of the ultimate pressure capacity and the shear resisting capacity of a PCCB can be greatly enhanced by introducing steel fibers in a conventional RC. Estimation results indicate that the ultimate pressure capacity and maximum lateral displacement of a PCCB can be improved by 16% and 64%, respectively, if a conventional RC contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%

Influence of Steel Fibers on the Structural Performance of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choun, Youngsun; Hahm, Daegi; Park, Junhee [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2013-05-15

A large number of previous experimental investigations indicate that the use of steel fibers in conventional reinforced concrete (RC) can enhance the structural and functional performance of prestressed concrete containment buildings (PCCBs) in nuclear power plants. A prevention of through-wall cracks and an increase of the post-cracking ductility will improve the ultimate internal pressure capacity, and a high shear resistance under cyclic loadings will increase the seismic resisting capacity. In this study, the effects of steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) on the ultimate pressure and seismic capacities of a PCCB are investigated. The effects of steel fibers on the ultimate pressure and shear resisting capacities of a PCCB are investigated. It is revealed that both of the ultimate pressure capacity and the shear resisting capacity of a PCCB can be greatly enhanced by introducing steel fibers in a conventional RC. Estimation results indicate that the ultimate pressure capacity and maximum lateral displacement of a PCCB can be improved by 16% and 64%, respectively, if a conventional RC contains hooked steel fibers in a volume fraction of 1.0%.

Analysis of initial prestress force of spatial tendon prestressed concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shiau, H.-S.

1975-01-01

A theoretical investigation is presented of the initial stage of prestressed tendon and prestressed concrete before and after jacking force of tendon anchorage released. A method is developed that is applicable to any kind of spatial tendon considering frictional loss due to length and curvature effects. A triple integral equation of one independent variable and jacking force is derived to represent an exact solution of tendon force along the whole tendon which may have reverse curvatures. In order to analyze the stress response of concrete due to this prestress force by using existing finite element computer program or any other kind of computer program, a systematic method is suggested to obtain tendon force components, which are represented by a series of equations of one independent variable, in any coordinate system as external force applied on the concrete. The resulting systems of the equations are then solved by numerical mathematic and computer techniques. Two numerical examples are represented. The first example is, dome prestress analysis of containment building by the proposed method and Kalnins' computer program for shell of revolution. Results are discussed. The second example is picked from prestress analysis for personnel air lock of containment building by using proposed method and FELAP finite element Computer program. It includes two different tendon arrangements around the opening. The results of these two different arrangements are compared and discussed

Modeling the long-term durability of concrete barriers in the context of low-activity waste storage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Samson E.

2013-07-01

Full Text Available The paper investigates the long-term durability of concrete barriers in contact with a cementitious wasteform designed to immobilize low-activity nuclear waste. The high-pH pore solution of the wasteform contains high concentration level of sulfate, nitrate, nitrite and alkalis. The multilayer concrete/wasteform system was modeled using a multiionic reactive transport model accounting for coupling between species, dissolution/ precipitation reactions, and feedback effect. One of the primary objectives was to investigate the risk associated with the presence of sulfate in the wasteform on the durability of concrete. Simulation results showed that formation of expansive phases, such as gypsum and ettringite, into the concrete barrier was not extensive. Based on those results, it was not possible to conclude that concrete would be severely damaged, even after 5,000 years. Lab work was performed to provide data to validate the modeling results. Paste samples were immersed in sulfate contact solutions and analyzed to measure the impact of the aggressive environment on the material. The results obtained so far tend to confirm the numerical simulations.

CORCON-MOD3: An integrated computer model for analysis of molten core-concrete interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bradley, D.R.; Gardner, D.R.; Brockmann, J.E.; Griffith, R.O.

1993-10-01

The CORCON-Mod3 computer code was developed to mechanistically model the important core-concrete interaction phenomena, including those phenomena relevant to the assessment of containment failure and radionuclide release. The code can be applied to a wide range of severe accident scenarios and reactor plants. The code represents the current state of the art for simulating core debris interactions with concrete. This document comprises the user's manual and gives a brief description of the models and the assumptions and limitations in the code. Also discussed are the input parameters and the code output. Two sample problems are also given

Preliminary model for core/concrete interactions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murfin, W.B.

1977-08-01

A preliminary model is described for computing the rate of penetration of concrete by a molten LWR core. Among the phenomena included are convective stirring of the melt by evolved gases, admixture of concrete decomposition products to the melt, chemical reactions, radiative heat loss, and variation of heat transfer coefficients with local pressure. The model is most applicable to a two-phase melt (metallic plus oxidic) having a fairly high metallic content

Use of triangular membership function for prediction of compressive strength of concrete containing nanosilica

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Sakshi Gupta

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, application of fuzzy logic technique using triangular membership function for developing models for predicting compressive strength of concrete with partial replacement of cement with nanosilica has been carried out. For this, the data have been taken from various literatures and help in optimizing the constituents available and reducing cost and efforts in studying design to develop mixes by predefining suitable range for experimenting. The use of nanostructured materials in concrete can add many benefits that are directly related to the durability of various cementitious materials, besides the fact that it is possible to reduce the quantities of cement in the composite. Successful prediction by the model indicates that fuzzy logic could be a useful modelling tool for engineers and research scientists in the area of cement and concrete. Compressive strength values of concrete can be predicted in fuzzy logic models without attempting any experiments in a quite short period of time with tiny error rates.

Computation of shrinkage stresses in prestressed concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu, R.F.; Ouyang, H.

1989-01-01

According to a survey, surface cracking on PCRVs and PCCs under the investigations is confined to drying shrinkage and thermal strain effects and no instances of structurally significant cracking was been found. In this paper, the authors use FEM to compute humidity distribution in drying concrete and shrinkage stresses by internal restraint. Since PCC is built segment by segment in several years, a computational model taking into account construction sequence is presented and shrinkage stresses by external restraints are calculated with the model

Foamed concrete containing rice husk ash as sand replacement: an experimental study on compressive strength

Science.gov (United States)

Rum, R. H. M.; Jaini, Z. M.; Boon, K. H.; Khairaddin, S. A. A.; Rahman, N. A.

2017-11-01

This study presents the utilization of rice husk ash (RHA) as sand replacement in foamed concrete. The study focuses on the effect of RHA on the compressive strength of foamed concrete. RHA contains high pozzolanic material that reacts with cementitious to enhance the strength and durability of foamed concrete. RHA also acts as filler causing the foamed concrete to become denser while retaining its unique low density. A total 243 cube specimens was prepared for the compression test. Two sets of mix design were employed at water-cement (W/C) ratio of 0.55, 0.60 and cement-sand ratio of 0.50, 0.33. The results revealed that the presence of RHA as sand replacement resulted in an increase in the compressive strength of foamed concrete. Moreover, 30% to 40% RHA was the optimum content level, contributing to the compressive strength of 18.1 MPa to 22.4 MPa. The W/C ratio and superplasticiser dosage play small roles in improving workability. In contrast, density governs the compressive strength of foamed concrete.

A 1055 ft/sec impact test of a two foot diameter model nuclear reactor containment system without fracture

Science.gov (United States)

Puthoff, R. L.

1972-01-01

A study to determine the feasibility of containing the fission products of a mobile reactor in the event of an impact is presented. The model simulated the reactor core, energy absorbing gamma shielding, neutron shielding and the containment vessel. It was impacted against an 18,000 pound reinforced concrete block at 1055 ft/sec. The model was significantly deformed and the concrete block demolished. No leaks were detected nor were any cracks observed in the model after impact.

State of the art for fabricating and emplacing concrete containers into large horizontal disposal caverns in the french geological repository - 59267

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bosgiraud, Jean-Michel; Guariso, Maurice; Pineau, Francois

2012-01-01

The research and development work presented in this paper was initialized by Andra in 2007. The work necessary for manufacturing and testing a full scale demonstrator is presently implemented. The case story is twofold. The first part is related to the initial development of a high performance concrete formulation used for fabricating concrete storage containers (containing Intermediate Level and Long Lived Waste primary canisters) to be stacked and emplaced into 400-m long concrete lined horizontal disposal vaults (also called cavern), excavated in the Callovo-Oxfordian clay host formation at a 550 to 600-m depth, with an inside diameter of approximately 8-m. The fabrication of the concrete boxes is illustrated. The second part presents the outcome at the end of the detailed design phase, for a system which is now being manufactured (for further test and assembly), for the emplacement of the concrete containers inside the vault. The application was engineered for remote emplacing a pile of 2 concrete containers (the containers are preliminarily stacked in a pile of 2, inside a hot cell, thanks to a ground travelling gantry crane). The emplacement process is justified and the related emplacement synoptic is illustrated. The test campaign is scheduled in 2011-2012. The successful completion of the technical trials is mandatory to confirm the mechanical feasibility of remotely emplacing concrete containers into large horizontal disposal caverns over long distances. The later display of the machinery at work in Andra's showroom will be instrumental for the confidence building process involving the various stakeholders concerned by the public enquiry period (mid-2013) preceding the deep geological repository license application (2014-2015). (authors)

Mechanical Model for Dynamic Behavior of Concrete Under Impact Loading

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, Yuanxiang

Concrete is a geo-material which is used substantively in the civil building and military safeguard. One coupled model of damage and plasticity to describe the complex behavior of concrete subjected to impact loading is proposed in this research work. The concrete is assumed as homogeneous continuum with pre-existing micro-cracks and micro-voids. Damage to concrete is caused due to micro-crack nucleation, growth and coalescence, and defined as the probability of fracture at a given crack density. It induces a decrease of strength and stiffness of concrete. Compaction of concrete is physically a collapse of the material voids. It produces the plastic strain in the concrete and, at the same time, an increase of the bulk modulus. In terms of crack growth model, micro-cracks are activated, and begin to propagate gradually. When crack density reaches a critical value, concrete takes place the smashing destroy. The model parameters for mortar are determined using plate impact experiment with uni-axial strain state. Comparison with the test results shows that the proposed model can give consistent prediction of the impact behavior of concrete. The proposed model may be used to design and analysis of concrete structures under impact and shock loading. This work is supported by State Key Laboratory of Explosion science and Technology, Beijing Institute of Technology (YBKT14-02).

Modeling reinforced concrete durability.

Science.gov (United States)

2014-06-01

This project developed a next-generation modeling approach for projecting the extent of : reinforced concrete corrosion-related damage, customized for new and existing Florida Department of : Transportation bridges and suitable for adapting to broade...

Experimental study on the shrinkage properties and cracking potential of high strength concrete containing industrial by-products for nuclear power plant concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

KIm, Baek Joong; Yi, Chong Ku

2017-01-01

In Korea, attempts have been made to develop high strength concrete for the safety and design life improvement of nuclear power plants. In this study, the cracking potentials of nuclear power plant-high strength concretes (NPP-HSCs) containing industrial by-products with W/B 0.34 and W/B 0.28, which are being reviewed for their application in the construction of containment structures, were evaluated through autogenous shrinkage, unrestrained drying shrinkage, and restrained drying shrinkage experiments. The cracking potentials of the NPP-HSCs with W/B 0.34 and W/B 0.28 were in the order of 0.34FA25 > 0.34FA25BFS25 > 0.34BFS50 > 0.34BFS65SF5 and 0.28FA25SF5 >> 0.28BFS65SF5 > 0.28BFS45SF5 > 0.28 FA20BFS25SF5, respectively. The cracking potentials of the seven mix proportions excluding 0.28FA25SF5 were lower than that of the existing nuclear power plant concrete; thus, the durability of a nuclear power plant against shrinkage cracking could be improved by applying the seven mix proportions with low cracking potentials

Experimental study on the shrinkage properties and cracking potential of high strength concrete containing industrial by-products for nuclear power plant concrete

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

KIm, Baek Joong; Yi, Chong Ku [School of Civil, Environmental and Architectural Engineering, Korea University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2017-02-15

In Korea, attempts have been made to develop high strength concrete for the safety and design life improvement of nuclear power plants. In this study, the cracking potentials of nuclear power plant-high strength concretes (NPP-HSCs) containing industrial by-products with W/B 0.34 and W/B 0.28, which are being reviewed for their application in the construction of containment structures, were evaluated through autogenous shrinkage, unrestrained drying shrinkage, and restrained drying shrinkage experiments. The cracking potentials of the NPP-HSCs with W/B 0.34 and W/B 0.28 were in the order of 0.34FA25 > 0.34FA25BFS25 > 0.34BFS50 > 0.34BFS65SF5 and 0.28FA25SF5 >> 0.28BFS65SF5 > 0.28BFS45SF5 > 0.28 FA20BFS25SF5, respectively. The cracking potentials of the seven mix proportions excluding 0.28FA25SF5 were lower than that of the existing nuclear power plant concrete; thus, the durability of a nuclear power plant against shrinkage cracking could be improved by applying the seven mix proportions with low cracking potentials.

Experiences in development, qualification, and use of concrete high-integrity containers in commercial disposal of radioactive wastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schmitt, R.C.; Reno, H.W.

1985-01-01

Disposal of EPICOR prefilters as commercial radioactive wastes is being accomplished by using a first-of-a-kind, reinforced concrete, high-integrity container (HIC) in lieu of prior in situ solidification of resins before disposal of prefilters. Experiences in developing, testing, certifying, and using high-integrity containers are an untold story worthy of review for the benefit of the nuclear industry at large. The lessons learned in gaining regulatory acceptance of the concrete HIC are discussed. 6 refs., 1 tab

DURABILITY OF GREEN CONCRETE WITH TERNARY CEMENTITIOUS SYSTEM CONTAINING RECYCLED AGGREGATE CONCRETE AND TIRE RUBBER WASTES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MAJID MATOUQ ASSAS

2016-06-01

Full Text Available All over the world billions of tires are being discarded and buried representing a serious ecological threat. Up to now a small part is recycled and millions of tires are just stockpiled, landfilled or buried. This paper presents results about the properties and the durability of green concrete contains recycled concrete as a coarse aggregate with partial replacement of sand by tire rubber wastes for pavement use. Ternary cementious system, Silica fume, Fly ash and Cement Kiln Dust are used as partial replacement of cement by weight. Each one replaced 10% of cement weight to give a total replacement of 30%. The durability performance was assessed by means of water absorption, chloride ion permeability at 28 and 90 days, and resistance to sulphuric acid attack at 1, 7, 14 and 28 days. Also to the compression behaviors for the tested specimens at 7, 14, 28 and 90 days were detected. The results show the existence of ternary cementitious system, silica fly ash and Cement Kiln Dust minimizes the strength loss associated to the use of rubber waste. In this way, up to 10% rubber content and 30% ternary cementious system an adequate strength class value (30 MPa, as required for a wide range of common structural uses, can be reached both through natural aggregate concrete and recycled aggregate concrete. Results also show that, it is possible to use rubber waste up to 15% and still maintain a high resistance to acid attack. The mixes with 10%silica fume, 10% fly ash and 10% Cement Kiln Dust show a higher resistance to sulphuric acid attack than the reference mix independently of the rubber waste content. The mixes with rubber waste and ternary cementious system was a lower resistance to sulphuric acid attack than the reference mix.

Integral thermal model of severe accident dynamics of NPP with containment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arutyunyan, R.V.; Bol'shov, L.A.; Vasil'ev, A.D.; Kamennov, G.P.

1991-01-01

An analytical model of the interaction of reactor core remains with concrete during severe accidents at nuclear power plants is considered. Time dependences of side and radial concrete melting are plotted. Time dependences of containment atmosphere temperature and pressure during a severe accident at nuclear power plants are investigated analytically and numerically. The sensitivity of the results to the coefficient values in the problem is studied within the range of their concertainty. The Kaverna-1 is described. The results of modelling a severe NPP accident which have been obtained using the Kaverna-1 package are presented

Reliability-based design code calibration for concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, B.K.; Cho, H.N.; Chang, S.P.

1991-01-01

In this study, a load combination criteria for design and a probability-based reliability analysis were proposed on the basis of a FEM-based random vibration analysis. The limit state model defined for the study is a serviceability limit state of the crack failure that causes the emission of radioactive materials, and the results are compared with the case of strength limit state. More accurate reliability analyses under various dynamic loads such as earthquake loads were made possible by incorporating the FEM and random vibration theory, which is different from the conventional reliability analysis method. The uncertainties in loads and resistance available in Korea and the references were adapted to the situation of Korea, and especially in case of earthquake, the design earthquake was assessed based on the available data for the probabilistic description of earthquake ground acceleration in the Korea peninsula. The SAP V-2 is used for a three-dimensional finite element analysis of concrete containment structure, and the reliability analysis is carried out by modifying HRAS reliability analysis program for this study. (orig./GL)

Study of the concrete tensile creep: application for the containment vessel of the nuclear power plants (PWR)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Reviron, Nanthilde

2009-01-01

The aim of this work is to study experimentally and to conduct numerical simulations on the creep of concrete subjected to tensile stresses. The main purpose is to predict the behaviour of containment vessels of nuclear power plants (PWR) in the case of decennial test or accident. In order to satisfy to these industrial needs, it is necessary to characterize the behaviour of concrete under uniaxial tension. Thus, an important experimental study of tensile creep in concrete has been performed for different loading levels (50%, 70% and 90% of the tensile strength). In these tests, load was kept constant during 3 days. Several tests were performed: measurements of elastic properties and strength (in tension and in compression), monitoring of drying, shrinkage, basic creep and drying creep strains. Moreover, compressive creep tests were also performed and showed a difference with tensile creep. Furthermore, decrease of tensile strength and failure under tensile creep for large loading levels were observed. A numerical model has been proposed and developed in Cast3m finite element code. (author)

Modelling the electrical properties of concrete for shielding effectiveness prediction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandrolini, L; Reggiani, U; Ogunsola, A

2007-01-01

Concrete is a porous, heterogeneous material whose abundant use in numerous applications demands a detailed understanding of its electrical properties. Besides experimental measurements, material theoretical models can be useful to investigate its behaviour with respect to frequency, moisture content or other factors. These models can be used in electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) to predict the shielding effectiveness of a concrete structure against external electromagnetic waves. This paper presents the development of a dispersive material model for concrete out of experimental measurement data to take account of the frequency dependence of concrete's electrical properties. The model is implemented into a numerical simulator and compared with the classical transmission-line approach in shielding effectiveness calculations of simple concrete walls of different moisture content. The comparative results show good agreement in all cases; a possible relation between shielding effectiveness and the electrical properties of concrete and the limits of the proposed model are discussed

Compressive and flexural strength of concrete containing palm oil biomass clinker and polypropylene fibres

Science.gov (United States)

Ibrahim, M. H. Wan; Mangi, Sajjad Ali; Burhanudin, M. K.; Ridzuan, M. B.; Jamaluddin, N.; Shahidan, S.; Wong, YH; Faisal, SK; Fadzil, M. A.; Ramadhansyah, P. J.; Ayop, S. S.; Othman, N. H.

2017-11-01

This paper presents the effects of using palm oil biomass (POB) clinker with polypropylene (PP) fibres in concrete on its compressive and flexural strength performances. Due to infrastructural development works, the use of concrete in the construction industry has been increased. Simultaneously, it raises the demand natural sand, which causes depletion of natural resources. While considering the environmental and economic benefits, the utilization of industrial waste by-products in concrete will be the alternative solution of the problem. Among the waste products, one of such waste by-product is the palm oil biomass clinker, which is a waste product from burning processes of palm oil fibres. Therefore, it is important to utilize palm oil biomass clinker as partial replacement of fine aggregates in concrete. Considering the facts, an experimental study was conducted to find out the potential usage of palm oil fibres in concrete. In this study, total 48 number of specimens were cast to evaluate the compressive and flexural strength performances. Polypropylene fibre was added in concrete at the rate of 0.2%, 0.4% and 0.6%, and sand was replaced at a constant rate of 10% with palm oil biomass clinker. The flexural strength of concrete was noticed in the range of 2.25 MPa and 2.29 MPa, whereas, the higher value of flexural strength was recorded with 0.4% polypropylene fibre addition. Hence, these results show that the strength performances of concrete containing POB clinker could be improved with the addition of polypropylene fibre.

Exposure rates from concrete covered cylindrical units containing radioactive waste

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hedemann Jensen, P.

1983-03-01

Exposure rates from cylindrical waste units containing the nuclides 60 Co, 134 Cs and 137 Cs homogeneously mixed in a solidification product have been calculated. Analyses have been made for single drums and for two disposal geometries, one with the units placed below ground near the surface in a circular geometry, and one with the units placed on the ground in a pile behind a concrete wall. Due to self-shielding of the units, the exposure rate from the two geometries will be a factor of only 10 - 20 higher than from a single unit, even without soil or wall shielding. With one meter of soil above the circular pile below ground, a reduction factor of 5.10 3 to 5.10 4 can be achieved, depending on the nuclide considered. Placing a one-meter concrete wall in front of the drum pile on the ground gives rise to a reduction factor in the range of 5.10 5 to 2.10 7 . (author)

An international survey of in-service inspection experience with prestressed concrete pressure vessels and containments for nuclear reactors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1982-04-01

An international survey is presented of experience obtained from the in-service surveillance of prestressed concrete pressure vessels and containments for nuclear reactors. Some information on other prestressed concrete structures is also given. Experience has been gained during the working life of such structures in Western Europe and the USA over the years since 1967. For each country a summary is given of the nuclear programme, national standards and Codes of Practice, and the detailed in-service inspection programme. Reports are then given of the actual experience obtained from the inspection programme and the methods of measurement, examination and reporting employed in each country. A comprehensive bibliography of over 100 references is included. The appendices contain information on nuclear power stations which are operating, under construction or planned worldwide and which employ either prestressed concrete pressure vessels or containments. (U.K.)

Core-concrete molten pool dynamics and interfacial heat transfer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Benjamin, A.S.

1980-01-01

Theoretical models are derived for the heat transfer from molten oxide pools to an underlying concrete surface and from molten steel pools to a general concrete containment. To accomplish this, two separate effects models are first developed, one emphasizing the vigorous agitation of the molten pool by gases evolving from the concrete and the other considering the insulating effect of a slag layer produced by concrete melting. The resulting algebraic expressions, combined into a general core-concrete heat transfer representation, are shown to provide very good agreement with experiments involving molten steel pours into concrete crucibles

CFD approach to modeling of core-concrete interaction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vladimir V Chudanov; Anna E Aksenova; Valerii A Pervichko

2005-01-01

Full text of publication follows: A large attention is given to research behavior of concrete structures at high mechanical and thermal loadings, which those suffer at the severe accidents on Nuclear Power Plants with core melting and falling of the molten corium mass into reactor shaft. There are enough programs for analysis of heat and mass transfer processes at interaction of the molten corium with concrete. Most known among them CORCON and WECHSL, which were developed more than twenty years ago, allow considering a quasi-stationary phase decomposition of concrete and the some transition regimes. In opposing to the mentioned codes a new more generalized mathematical model and software are developed for modeling of a wide range of the heat and mass transfer processes under study of the molten core-concrete interaction. The developed mathematical model is based on the Navier-Stokes equations with variable properties with taking into account of a density jump under melting of concrete together with a heat transfer equation. The offered numerical technique is based on modern algorithms with small scheme diffusion, whose discrete approximations are constructed with use of finite-volume methods and the fully staggered grids. The developed software corresponds to modern level of development of computers and takes into account all phenomenology, used by mentioned codes, and allows to simulate the such phenomena and processes as: multidimensional heat transfer in concrete for modeling of transients for an intermediate thermal flux to concrete; direct erosion of concrete at a quasi-stationary regime of interaction with molten fuel masses; heat and mass transfer in corium and convective intermixing in a melt of corium with taking into account of its stratification on two layers of the metal and oxide components and heat transfer by radiation in a cavity of the reactor shaft; change physical properties of corium at concrete decomposition and release in corium of its

Mechanical Properties of High Strength Concrete Containing Coal Bottom Ash and Oil-Palm Boiler Clinker as Fine Aggregates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Soofinajafi Mahmood

2016-01-01

Full Text Available This research aims to utilize Coal Furnace Bottom ash (CBA and Oil-Palm Boiler Clinker (OPBC as fine aggregate in concrete mix proportions. They are solid wastes from power plant and Oil Palm industry, respectively. Since these by-products do not have any primary use and are pure waste, an opportunity to use them as aggregate in concrete industry not only is economical but also will be an environmental friendly opportunity leading towards a more sustainable production chain. CBA and OPBC sands had similar grading to normal sand but have lower density and higher water absorption. In a high strength concrete, normal sand was replaced up to 25% with either CBA or OPBC. Test results showed that although water absorption of these wastes was more than normal sand but the slump value of concrete containing each of these wastes showed that these concretes had good workability. All mixes containing these wastes had slightly lower compressive strength at early ages and equivalent or higher compressive strength at later ages compared to control mix. The 28-day compressive strength of these concretes was in the range of 69–76 MPa which can be categorized as high strength concrete. In general, the performance of OPBC was better than CBA at 25% replacement level. However, it is recommended that at least 12.5% of total volume of fine aggregate in a high strength concrete is used of CBA or OPBC.

Further development of KAVERN and code development on gas generation from the containment basement during concrete decomposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schwarzott, W.; Artnik, J.; Hassmann, K.; Kemner, H.; Stuckenberg, X.

1983-04-01

The events during the melt/concrete interaction, e.g. the shape of the cavity and the mass and energy of gases released to the containment atmosphere can be analysed by the computer code KAVERN. In case of basaltic conrete sump water contacts the melt surface after 7 hours. Overpressurization of the containment is calculated to occur after appr. 5 days. For different paths out of the reactor cavity to the containment atmosphere STROMI calculates the mass flow of the gases released during melt concrete interaction. Results show max. temperatures up to 1200 0 C which is well above the self ignition temperature of H 2 . (orig.) [de

Review of concrete biodeterioration in relation to nuclear waste.

Science.gov (United States)

Turick, Charles E; Berry, Christopher J

2016-01-01

Storage of radioactive waste in concrete structures is a means of containing wastes and related radionuclides generated from nuclear operations in many countries. Previous efforts related to microbial impacts on concrete structures that are used to contain radioactive waste showed that microbial activity can play a significant role in the process of concrete degradation and ultimately structural deterioration. This literature review examines the research in this field and is focused on specific parameters that are applicable to modeling and prediction of the fate of concrete structures used to store or dispose of radioactive waste. Rates of concrete biodegradation vary with the environmental conditions, illustrating a need to understand the bioavailability of key compounds involved in microbial activity. Specific parameters require pH and osmotic pressure to be within a certain range to allow for microbial growth as well as the availability and abundance of energy sources such as components involved in sulfur, iron and nitrogen oxidation. Carbon flow and availability are also factors to consider in predicting concrete biodegradation. The microbial contribution to degradation of the concrete structures containing radioactive waste is a constant possibility. The rate and degree of concrete biodegradation is dependent on numerous physical, chemical and biological parameters. Parameters to focus on for modeling activities and possible options for mitigation that would minimize concrete biodegradation are discussed and include key conditions that drive microbial activity on concrete surfaces. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Bond slip model for the simulation of reinforced concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Casanova, A.; Jason, L.; Davenne, L.

2012-01-01

This paper presents a new finite element approach to model the steel-concrete bond effects. This model proposes to relate steel, represented by truss elements, with the surrounding concrete in the case where the two meshes are not necessary coincident. The theoretical formulation is described and the model is applied on a reinforced concrete tie. A characteristic stress distribution is observed, related to the transfer of bond forces from steel to concrete. The results of this simulation are compared with a computation in which a perfect relation between steel and concrete is supposed. It clearly shows how the introduction of the bond model can improve the description of the cracking process (finite number of cracks). (authors)

Review of inservice inspections of greased tendons in prestressed-concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dougan, J.R.; Ashar, H.

1983-01-01

Prestressed-concrete containments in the United States using greased prestressing tendons are inspected periodically to ensure structural integrity and to identify and correct problem areas before they become critical. An analysis of the available utility inspection data and an evaluation of the current and proposed guidelines were conducted to provide a measure of the reliability of the inspection process. Comments from utility and industry personnel were factored into the analysis. The results indicated that the majority of the few incidences of problems or abnormalities which occurred were minor in nature and did not threaten the structural integrity of the containment

Development of ultrasonic testing technique to inspect containment liners embedded in concrete on nuclear power plants

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ishida, H.; Kurozumi, Y. [Inst. of Nuclear Safety System, Incorporated, Mihama, Fukui (Japan); Kaneshima, Y. [The Kansai Electric Power Company, Inc., Mihama, Fukui (Japan)

2004-07-01

The purpose of this study is development of ultrasonic testing technique to inspect containment liners embedded in concrete on nuclear power plants. Integrity of containment liners on nuclear power plants can be secured by suitable present operation and maintenance. Furthermore, non-destructive testing technique to inspect embedded liners will ensure the integrity of the containment further. In order to develop the non-destructive testing technique, ultrasonic transducers were made newly and ultrasonic testing data acquisition and evaluation were carried out by using a mock-up. We adopted the surface shear horizontal (SH) wave, low frequency (0.3-0.5MHz), to be able to detect an echo from a defect against attenuation of ultrasonic waves due to long propagation in the liners and dispersion into concrete. We made transducers with three large active elements (40mm x 40mm) in a line which were equivalent to a 120mm width active element. Artificial hollows, {phi}200mm - 19mm depth (1/2thickness) and {phi}200mm - 9.5mm depth (1/4thickness), were made on a surface of a mock-up: carbon steel plate, 38mm thickness, 2,000mm length, 1000mm width. The surfaces of the plate were covered with concrete in order to simulate liners embedded in concrete. As a result of the examinations, the surface SH transducers could detect clearly the echo from the hollows at a distance of 1500mm. We evaluate that the newly made surface SH transducers with three elements have ability of detection of defects such as corrosion on the liners embedded in concrete. (author)

Self-consolidating concretes containing waste PET bottles as sand replacement

Science.gov (United States)

Khalid, Faisal Sheikh; Azmi, Nurul Bazilah; Mazenan, Puteri Natasya; Shahidan, Shahiron; Othman, Nor hazurina; Guntor, Nickholas Anting Anak

2018-02-01

This study evaluates the effect of self-consolidating concrete (SCC) containing waste polyethylene terephthalate (PET) granules on the fresh, mechanical and water absorption properties. Fine aggregates were replaced from 0% to 8% by PET granules. The fresh properties of SCC containing PET granules were determined using slump flow and V-funnel flow time tests. The compressive and splitting tensile strength were evaluated. The results indicated that utilization of waste PET granules in production of SCC could be an effective way for recycling purpose. The maximum amount of PET replacement should be limited to 5%. Exceeding 5% of PET content may result in an increase of V-funnel flow time to overpass the limiting value, decrease in strength. The production of high performance SCC containing 5% PET granules satisfies all the requirements for SCC with satisfactory outputs.

High temperature concrete composites containing organosiloxane crosslinked copolymers

Science.gov (United States)

Zeldin, A.; Carciello, N.; Kukacka, L.; Fontana, J.

High temperature polymer concrete composites comprising about 10 to 30% by weight of a liquid monomer mixture is described. It consists essentially of an organosiloxane polymer crosslinked with an olefinically unsaturated monomer selected from the group consisting of styrene, methyl methacrylate, trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate, triallyl cyanurate, n-phenylmalimide, divinyl benzene and mixtures thereof. About 70 to 90% by weight of an inert inorganic filler system containing silica sand and portland cement, Fe/sub 2/O/sub 3/, carbon black or mixtures thereof. Optionally a free radical initiator such as di-tert-butyl peroxide, azobisisobyutyronitrile, benzoyl peroxide, lauryl peroxide and other organic peroxides are used to initiate crosspolymerization of the monomer mixture in the presence of the inorganic filler.

Behavior of cracked concrete nuclear containment vessels during earthquakes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gergely, P.; Stanton, J.F.; White, R.N.

1975-01-01

When pressure builds up in a reinforced concrete nuclear containment shell, its cylindrical wall cracks vertically and horizontally at intervals of about five feet. If an earthquake occurs simultaneously with this pressurization, inertia forces are transmitted across the horizontal crack planes. The forces and deformations must be small enough to maintain the integrity of the steel liner. A typical containment shell has a radius of about 65 ft. and a wall thickness of about 4 ft. It is heavily reinforced with vertical, horizontal, and sometimes diagonal bars. A steel shell of about 3 / 8 in. thickness is attached to the concrete with anchors. The seismic shear forces are transmitted across the horizontal cracks by interface shear transfer (combination of shear friction and aggregate interlocking), by dowel action of the bars, and by diagonal bars if they are used. One important question in the design of such vessels is whether the diagonal bars are necessary. In the experimental portion of the current investigation several types of tests were conducted to study the load-slip characteristics of interface shear transfer under high intensity cyclic loading. In some cases external bars provided the clamping action of reinforcement, in more recent tests large diameter embedded bars were used. This presentation summarizes the analytical part of the investigation. A representative load-slip curve has been used in the analyses to assess the intensity of the stresses and deformations, and to study the importance of the variables as an aid in planning future tests

NFAP calculation of pressure response of 1/6th scale model containment structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Costantino, C.J.; Pepper, S.; Reich, M.

1988-01-01

The details associated with the NFAP calculation of the pressure response of the 1/6th scale model containment structure are discussed in this paper. Comparisons are presented of some of the primary items of interest with those determined from the experiment. It was found from this comparison that the hoop response of the containment wall was adequately predicted by the NFAP finite element calculation, including the response in the high pressure, high strain range at which cracking of the concrete and yielding of the hoop reinforcement occurred. In the vertical or meridional direction, it was found that the model was significantly softer than predicted by the finite element calculation; that is, the vertical strains in the test were three to four times larger than computed in the NFAP calculation. These differences were noted even at low strain levels at which the concrete would not be expected to be cracked under tensile loadings. Simplified calculations for the containment indicate that the vertical stiffness of the wall is similar to that which would be determined by assuming the concrete fully cracked. Thus, the experiment indicates an anomalous behavior in the vertical direction

Strengths and Failure Characteristics of Self-Compacting Concrete Containing Recycled Waste Glass Aggregate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rahman Khaleel AL-Bawi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The effects of different proportions of green-colored waste glass (WG cullet on the mechanical and fracture properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC were experimentally investigated. Waste bottles were collected, washed, crushed, and sieved to prepare the cullet used in this study. Cullet was incorporated at different percentages (0%, 20%, 40%, 60%, 80%, and 100% by weight instead of natural fine aggregate (NFA and/or natural coarse aggregate (NCA. Three SCC series were designed with a constant slump flow of 700±30 mm, total binder content of 570 kg/m3 and at water-to-binder (w/b ratio of 0.35. Moreover, fly ash (FA was used in concrete mixtures at 20% of total binder content. Mechanical aspects such as compressive, splitting tensile, and net flexural strengths and modulus of elasticity of SCC were investigated and experimentally computed at 28 days of age. Moreover, failure characteristics of the concretes were also monitored via three-point bending test on the notched beams. The findings revealed that the mechanical properties as well as fracture parameters were adversely influenced by incorporating of WG cullet. However, highest reduction of compressive strength did not exceed 43% recorded at 100% WG replacement level. Concretes containing WG showed less brittle behavior than reference concrete at any content.

Ultrasonic imaging in concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ribay, G.; Paris, O.; Rambach, J.M.

2009-01-01

The third and final protection barrier confining nuclear reactors is usually a concrete containment structure. Monitoring the structural integrity of these barriers is critical in ensuring the safety of nuclear power plants. The Institute for Radiological Protection and Nuclear Safety (IRSN) in France in collaboration with the French Atomic commission (CEA/LIST) has developed an ultrasonic phased-array technique capable of inspecting thick concrete walls. The non-destructive method is dedicated to detect cracks and bulk defects. Given the thickness of the structure (1.2 m) undergoing inspection and the heterogeneity of the concrete, the optimal frequency lies in the 50-300 kHz range. At these frequencies, the ultrasonic beam profiles are widespread (non-directive) with poor signal-to-noise ratio. Previous studies have shown the potential of using phased-array techniques (i.e., beam focusing and beam steering) in order to improve detection resolution and sizing accuracy. In this paper we present experimental studies performed with array up to 16 transducers working at 200 kHz. Experiments are carried out on representative concrete blocks containing artificial defects. One is a reinforced mock-up representative of the first reinforcing mesh of wall containment. Experimental results show that in spite of the reinforcement, artificial defects deep as half a meter can be detected. Reconstructed images resulting from phased array acquisitions on an artificial crack embedded in a concrete block are also presented and discussed. The presented method allows detecting oriented defects in concrete with improved signal to noise ratio and sensibility. A simulation model of the interaction of ultrasound with a heterogeneous medium like concrete is briefly commented. (authors)

Development of heat resistant concrete and its application to concrete casks. Improvement of neutron shielding performance of concrete in high temperature environment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Owaki, Eiji; Hata, Akihito; Sugihara, Yutaka; Shimojo, Jun; Taniuchi, Hiroaki; Mantani, Kenichi

2003-01-01

Heat resistant concrete with hydrogen, which is able to shield neutron at more than 100degC, was developed. Using this new type concrete, a safety concrete cask having the same concept of metal casks was designed and produced. The new type cask omitted the inhalation and exhaust vent of the conventional type concrete casks. The new concrete consists of Portland cement added calcium hydroxide, iron powder and iron fiber. It showed 2.17 g/cm 3 density, 10.8 mass% water content, 1.4 W/(m·K) thermal conductivity at 150degC. Increasing of heat resistance made possible to produce the perfect sealing type structure, which had high shielding performance of radiation no consideration for streaming of radiation. Moreover, a monitor of sealing can be set. General view of concrete casks, outer view of 1/3 scaled model, cask storage system in the world, properties of new developed heat resistant concrete, results of shielding calculation are contained. (S.Y.)

Mathematical simulation of gas pressure in fibre-reinforced concrete container at radiation and biological decomposition of cellulose, bituminized and concrete radwastes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuruc, J.; Kvito, P.

2005-01-01

Fibre-reinforced concrete container (FRCC) are used for long-time repository of radioactive wastes. Low- and middle-active radwastes from operation of the NPPs V-1, V-2 Jaslovske Bohunice, Mochovce NPP and from decommissioned NPP A-1 (Jaslovske Bohunice) are treated in the plant SE-VYZ in Jaslovske Bohunice and after immobilisation are deposited in National Radwaste Repository Mochovce (RU RAO). After filling of the RU RAO, FRCC will be stored during 300 years. During this time the integrity of the FRCC must be guaranteed. By the influence of autoradiolysis of the cellulose and bituminized radwastes as well as in cement grout the gases are formed, mainly the hydrogen, methane and carbon dioxide. In the case of presence of available water (a w ≥ 0.63) and in presence of microbes and moulds at appropriate conditions the biological decomposition of cellulose materials may proceed with formation of H 2 , CH 4 a CO 2 . With increasing of developed gases may increase pressure in FRCC, that may initiate the loss of integrity of the FRCC with following endangering of radiation safety of the RU RAO, respectively of the territory over the repository.Authors developed the new mathematical model of pressure of gases in FRCC and in deposited barrels with cellulose and bituminized radwastes. The mathematical model is based on biological decomposition of cellulose materials as well as on radiation decomposition of cellulose, bitumen and concrete. In this mathematical model the diffusion through the walls of FRCC is the main process responsible for decreasing of the pressure. This model was developed in two basic variants: (1) Mathematical model of gas pressure in FRCC as function of dose; (2) Mathematical model of gas pressure in FRCC as function of mass of cellulose

A 640 foot per second impact test of a two foot diameter model nuclear reactor containment system without fracture

Science.gov (United States)

Puthoff, R. L.

1971-01-01

An impact test was conducted on an 1142 pound 2 foot diameter sphere model. The purpose of this test was to determine the feasibility of containing the fission products of a mobile reactor in an impact. The model simulated the reactor core, energy absorbing gamma shielding, neutron shielding and the containment vessel. It was impacted against an 18,000 pound reinforced concrete block. The model was significantly deformed and the concrete block demolished. No leaks were detected nor cracks observed in the model after impact.

Investigating the Properties of Asphalt Concrete Containing Glass Fibers and Nanoclay

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hasan Taherkhani

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The performance of asphaltic pavements during their service life is highly dependent on the mechanical properties of the asphaltic layers. Therefore, in order to extend their service life, scientists and engineers are constantly trying to improve the mechanical properties of the asphaltic mixtures. One common method of improving the performance of asphaltic mixtures is using different types of additives. This research investigated the effects of reinforcement by randomly distributed glass fibers and the simultaneous addition of nanoclayon some engineering properties of asphalt concrete have been investigated. The properties of a typical asphalt concrete reinforced by different percentages of glass fibers were compared with those containing both the fibers and nanoclay. Engineering properties, including Marshall stability, flow, Marshall quotient, volumetric properties and indirect tensile strength were studied. Glass fibers were used in different percentages of 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6% (by weight of total mixture, and nanoclay was used in 2, 4 and 6% (by the weight of bitumen. It was found that the addition of fibers proved to be more effective than the nanoclay in increasing the indirect tensile strength. However, nanoclay improved the resistance of the mixture against permanent deformation better than the glass fibers. The results also showed that the mixture reinforced by 0.2% of glass fiber and containing 6% nanoclay possessed the highest Marshall quotient, and the mixture containing 0.6% glass fibers and 2% nanoclay possessedthe highest indirect tensile strength.

Experimental studies in Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity of roller compacted concrete pavement containing fly ash and M-sand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

S. Krishna Rao

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This paper presents the experimental investigation results of Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity (UPV tests conducted on roller compacted concrete pavement (RCCP material containing Class F fly ash of as mineral admixture. River sand, M-sand and combination of M-sand and River sand are used as fine aggregate in this experimental work. Three types of fly ash roller compacted concrete mixes are prepared using above three types of fine aggregates and they are designated as Series A (River sand, Series B (manufactured sand and Series C (combination of River sand and M-sand. In each series the fly ash content in place of cement is varied from 0% to 60%. In each series and for different ages of curing (i.e 3, 7, 28 and 90 days forty two cube specimens are cast and tested for compressive strength and UPV. The UPV results of fly ash containing roller compacted concrete pavement (FRCCP show lower values at all ages from 3 days to 90 days in comparison with control mix concrete (0% fly ash in all mixes. However, it is also observed that Series B and C mixes containing fly ash show better results in UPV values, compressive strength and Dynamic Elastic Modulus in comparison to Series A mixes with fly ash. Relationships between compressive strength of FRCCP and UPV and Dynamic Elastic Modulus are proposed for all series mixes. A new empirical equation is proposed to determine the Dynamic Elastic Modulus of FRCCP. Keywords: Compressive strength, Dynamic Elastic Modulus, Fly ash, Roller compacted concrete pavement, Ultrasonic Pulse Velocity

A constitutive model for concrete under dynamic loading

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suaris, W.; Shah, S.P.

1983-01-01

A continuous damage theory for the quasistatic and dynamic behaviour of concrete is presented. The continuous damage theory is rational choice for use in predicing the dynamic behaviour of concrete as the strain-rate effects that have been observed for concrete can to a large extent be attributed to the rate-sensitivity of the microcracking process. A vectorial representation is adopted for the damage to account for the planar nature of the microcracks in concrete. Damage is treated as an internal state variable influencing the free energy of the material and the constitutive equations and the damage evolution equations are derived consistently using thermodynamic considerations. The developed constitutive model is then calibrated by using test results in flexure and compression over a range of strain-rates. The constitutive model is also shown to be capable of predicting certain other experimentally observed characteristics of the dynamic response of concrete. (orig./HP)

Calculation of the process of vacuum drying of a metal-concrete container with spent nuclear fuel

Science.gov (United States)

Karyakin, Yu. E.; Lavrent'ev, S. A.; Pavlyukevich, N. V.; Pletnev, A. A.; Fedorovich, E. D.

2012-01-01

An algorithm and results of calculation of the process of vacuum drying of a metal-concrete container intended for long-term "dry" storage of spent nuclear fuel are presented. A calculated substantiation of the initial amount of moisture in the container is given.

Damage modelling in concrete subject to sulfate attack

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

N. Cefis

2014-07-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we consider the mechanical effect of the sulfate attack on concrete. The durability analysis of concrete structures in contact to external sulfate solutions requires the definition of a proper diffusion-reaction model, for the computation of the varying sulfate concentration and of the consequent ettringite formation, coupled to a mechanical model for the prediction of swelling and material degradation. In this work, we make use of a two-ions formulation of the reactive-diffusion problem and we propose a bi-phase chemo-elastic damage model aimed to simulate the mechanical response of concrete and apt to be used in structural analyses.

Probabilistic evaluation of concrete containment capacity for beyond design basis internal pressures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, H.T.; Dameron, R.A.; Rashid, Y.R.

1995-01-01

For beyond design basis internal pressure loading, experimental studies have demonstrated that the most probable failure mode governing the ultimate functional capacity of concrete containments is leak rather than break. Based on leak rates measured in experiments, a prediction formula for leak rate as functions of containment liner size and internal pressure has been postulated. The determination of liner tear is cast in a probabilistic framework. In calculating leakage, particular attention is paid to the evaluation of leakage versus rupture and the loading rates that may be required to leapfrog over a leakage mode. (orig.)

Development of neutron shielding concrete containing iron content materials

Science.gov (United States)

Sariyer, Demet; Küçer, Rahmi

2018-02-01

Concrete is one of the most important construction materials which widely used as a neutron shielding. Neutron shield is obtained of interaction with matter depends on neutron energy and the density of the shielding material. Shielding properties of concrete could be improved by changing its composition and density. High density materials such as iron or high atomic number elements are added to concrete to increase the radiation resistance property. In this study, shielding properties of concrete were investigated by adding iron, FeB, Fe2B, stainless - steel at different ratios into concrete. Neutron dose distributions and shield design was obtained by using FLUKA Monte Carlo code. The determined shield thicknesses vary depending on the densities of the mixture formed by the additional material and ratio. It is seen that a combination of iron rich materials is enhanced the neutron shielding of capabilities of concrete. Also, the thicknesses of shield are reduced.

Modelling of chloride penetration in concrete under wet/dry cycle

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hong Sung-In

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This present study concerns modelling of chloride penetration in partially saturated concrete. To mimic the intermittent exposure of sea water to concrete, varying environmental conditions for relative humidity and chloride concentration were considered. As for the moisture distribution in concrete, statistical permeability model based on pore size distribution was used to represent influence of material properties on moisture transport. Then, a combined chloride diffusion and convection was modelled in variation of moisture level in concrete. As a result, smaller relative wet duration induces higher rate of chloride penetration due to enhanced moisture permeability from the surface, and also higher concentration gradient near the surface of concrete due to repeated wet/dry cycle. This implies that only diffusion analysis on chloride induced corrosion in concrete structure may underestimate the serviceability in given material performance.

A realistic structural analysis of the integrity of the liner of reinforced and prestressed concrete containments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Buchhardt, F.; Brandl, P.

1979-01-01

The BWR Gundremmingen II is the first German nuclear power plant with a concrete containment having a thin steel plate liner directly attached to the interior concrete surface to provide an air-tight seal. Due to this monolithic way of anchorage a bonded system of concrete and metal liner membrane is obtained so that the same deformations of the loading or strain conditions are induced to the very stiff concrete hull as well as to the liner. Because of the complex structural behaviour of the bonded system the evaluation is carried out by the finite element method. The overall system is decoupled in several steps. Due to its considerable stiffness the concrete structure can be regarded as the liner supporting basis. The liner system itself might be subdivided into perfect and imperfect sections discretized by plain or curved elements which are supported by point-wise spring elements representing the stud anchors. (orig.)

Evaluation of Shear Resisting Capacity of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building with Steel or Polyamide Fiber Reinforcement

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choun, Youngsun; Park, Junhee

2014-01-01

Conventional reinforced concrete (RC) members generally show a rapid deterioration in shear resisting mechanisms under a reversed cyclic load. However, the use of high-performance fiber-reinforced cement composites provides excellent damage tolerance under large displacement reversals compared with regular concrete. Previous experimental studies have indicated that the use of fibers in conventional RC can enhance the structural and functional performance of prestressed concrete containment buildings (PCCBs) in nuclear power plants. This study evaluates the shear resisting capacity for a PCCB constructed using steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) or polyamide fiber reinforced concrete (PFRC). The effects of steel and polyamide fibers on the shear performance of a PCCB were investigated. It was revealed that steel fibers are more effective to enhance the shear resisting capacity of a PCCB than polyamide fibers. The ductility and energy dissipation increase significantly in fiber reinforced PCCBs

Evaluation of Shear Resisting Capacity of a Prestressed Concrete Containment Building with Steel or Polyamide Fiber Reinforcement

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choun, Youngsun; Park, Junhee [Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2014-05-15

Conventional reinforced concrete (RC) members generally show a rapid deterioration in shear resisting mechanisms under a reversed cyclic load. However, the use of high-performance fiber-reinforced cement composites provides excellent damage tolerance under large displacement reversals compared with regular concrete. Previous experimental studies have indicated that the use of fibers in conventional RC can enhance the structural and functional performance of prestressed concrete containment buildings (PCCBs) in nuclear power plants. This study evaluates the shear resisting capacity for a PCCB constructed using steel fiber reinforced concrete (SFRC) or polyamide fiber reinforced concrete (PFRC). The effects of steel and polyamide fibers on the shear performance of a PCCB were investigated. It was revealed that steel fibers are more effective to enhance the shear resisting capacity of a PCCB than polyamide fibers. The ductility and energy dissipation increase significantly in fiber reinforced PCCBs.

Monitoring the Durability Performance of Concrete in Nuclear Waste Containment. Technical Progress Report No. 3

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ulm, Franz-Josef

2000-01-01

OAK-B135 Monitoring the Durability Performance of Concrete in Nuclear Waste Containment. Technical Progress Report No. 3(NOTE: Part II A item 1 indicates ''PAPER'', but a report is attached electronically)

Assessment of aggregates- cement paste border in concretes containing silica fume and fly ash

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ali Sademomtazi

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The bond between aggregate and cement paste, called the interfacial transition zone (ITZ is an important parameter that effect on the mechanical properties and durability of concrete. Transition zone microstructure and porosity (pores of cement paste or concrete are affected by the type and properties of materials used which evaluated in this research. On the other hand, the use of efficient, low-cost and reliable method is particularly important for evaluating of concrete performance against the chloride ion penetration and its relationships with transition zone as a suitable index to assess the durability. So far, various methods to approach the electrical Indices are presented. In this research, the effect of pozzolanic materials fly ash (10%, 20% and 30% and silica fume (5% and 10% as substitute of cement by weight in binary and ternary mixtures on the fresh and hardened concrete properties were investigated. To determine mechanical properties, the compressive strength, splitting tensile strength and modulus of elasticity tests were performed. Also, water penetration depth, porosity, water sorptivity, specific electrical resistivity, rapid chloride penetration test (RCPT and rapid chloride migration test (RCMT tests were applied to evaluate concrete durability. To examine the border of aggregate and cement paste morphology of concrete specimens, scanning electron microscope images (SEM was used. The fresh concrete results showed that the presence of silica fume in binary and ternary mixtures reduced workability and air content but fly ash increased them. Adding silica fume to mixtures of containing flay ash while increasing mechanical strength reduced the porosity and pores to 18%. The presence of pozzolanic materials in addition to increasing bond quality and uniformity of aggregate-cement matrix border a considerably positive effect on the transport properties of concrete.

Triaxial constitutive model for plain and reinforced concrete behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Hong Duk

Inelastic failure analysis of concrete structures has been one of the central issues in concrete mechanics. Especially, the effect of confinement has been of great importance to capture the transition from brittle to ductile fracture of concrete under triaxial loading scenarios. Moreover, it has been a difficult task to implement numerically material descriptions which are susceptible to loss of stability and localization. Consequently, it has been a challenge to develop comprehensive material formulations of concrete, which consider the full spectrum of loading histories which the material in a real structure is subjected to. A new triaxial constitutive model of concrete is presented that not only describes the hardening/softening behavior of concrete in tension and low confined compression, but also captures the transition from brittle to ductile failure under high confinement. The concrete model is based on a loading surface that is Csp1-continuous, and that closes smoothly in equitriaxial compression, while the deviatoric trace expands from a triangular to a circular shape with increasing confinement. The plastic potential has a different curvature from the plastic loading function for non-associativity in order to reduce excessive inelastic dilatancy. In the thesis, the results of deformation and localization analyses for various loading histories are presented in the constitutive study. In addition, studies of associativity and non-associativity, and two-invariant versus three-invariant formulations are performed. At the structural level the triaxial concrete model is used to predict the nonlinear response behavior of a reinforced concrete column subject to axial and lateral loadings.

Modeling of porous concrete elements under load

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Demchyna B.H.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available It is known that cell concretes are almost immediately destroyed under load, having reached certain critical stresses. Such kind of destruction is called a “catastrophic failure”. Process of crack formation is one of the main factors, influencing process of concrete destruction. Modern theory of crack formation is mainly based on the Griffith theory of destruction. However, the mentioned theory does not completely correspond to the structure of cell concrete with its cell structure, because the theory is intended for a solid body. The article presents one of the possible variants of modelling of the structure of cell concrete and gives some assumptions concerning the process of crack formation in such hollow, not solid environment.

Modeling of porous concrete elements under load

Science.gov (United States)

Demchyna, B. H.; Famuliak, Yu. Ye.; Demchyna, Kh. B.

2017-12-01

It is known that cell concretes are almost immediately destroyed under load, having reached certain critical stresses. Such kind of destruction is called a "catastrophic failure". Process of crack formation is one of the main factors, influencing process of concrete destruction. Modern theory of crack formation is mainly based on the Griffith theory of destruction. However, the mentioned theory does not completely correspond to the structure of cell concrete with its cell structure, because the theory is intended for a solid body. The article presents one of the possible variants of modelling of the structure of cell concrete and gives some assumptions concerning the process of crack formation in such hollow, not solid environment.

Fractional order creep model for dam concrete considering degree of hydration

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yaoying; Xiao, Lei; Bao, Tengfei; Liu, Yu

2018-05-01

Concrete is a material that is an intermediate between an ideal solid and an ideal fluid. The creep of concrete is related not only to the loading age and duration, but also to its temperature and temperature history. Fractional order calculus is a powerful tool for solving physical mechanics modeling problems. Using a software element based on the generalized Kelvin model, a fractional order creep model of concrete considering the loading age and duration is established. Then, the hydration rate of cement is considered in terms of the degree of hydration, and the fractional order creep model of concrete considering the degree of hydration is established. Moreover, uniaxial tensile creep tests of dam concrete under different curing temperatures were conducted, and the results were combined with the creep test data and complex optimization method to optimize the parameters of a new creep model. The results show that the fractional tensile creep model based on hydration degree can better describe the tensile creep properties of concrete, and this model involves fewer parameters than the 8-parameter model.

EFFECT OF SEA WATER ON THE STRENGTH OF POROUS CONCRETE CONTAINING PORTLAND COMPOSITE CEMENT AND MICROFILAMENT POLYPROPYLENE FIBER

OpenAIRE

TJARONGE, M.W

2011-01-01

The aim of this research is to study the influence of sea water on the strength of porous concrete containing Portland Composite cement and micro monofilament polypropylene fibre. The specimens of porous concrete were immersed in the sea water up to 28 days. The compressive strength test and flexural strength test were carried out at 3, 7 and 28 days in order to investigate the strength development. The test result indicated that the strength of porous concrete can develop in t...

Design, analysis and construction of the prestressed concrete containment of the nuclear power station Gundremmingen

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mueller, W.F.; Ick, U.

1977-01-01

Kraftwerk Union AG is presently constructing at Gundremmingen (Bavaria) on the River Danube a BWR twin-plant (KRB Units B and C) with a capacity of 2x1300 MWe. Owing to the wall thickness/diameter ratio the containment can be calculated as a thin-walled shell. Areas of discontinuity are subjected to three-dimensional investigations. For the design of the concrete structure different fracture safety margins are defined for the load conditions occurring in operation in the event of a loss-of-coolant accident and as a result of an aircraft or an earthquake. From this results that in the cross sectional areas without discontinuities of the prestressed outer cylinder no resultant tensions occur. For the steel liner different limits of strain are permitted for the various load conditions, bearing in mind that the integrity of the liner must remain ensured at any time. In order to keep the stresses resulting from the constraint of the containment outer cylinder in the foundation slab low, the cylindrical wall is placed on bearings. The suppression pool top slab is constrained at the containment outer cylinder and at the containment inner cylindrical wall. The inlets of the vent pipes are integrated in the slab in a way resulting in a double slab. The liner consists of 8 mm thick steel plate and is anchored in the concrete via steel sections. Mechanical equipment anchoring in the concrete is provided by welding anchor plates into the liner after the section concerned has been completed. The carcass work on the reactor building is scheduled to be completed within

Properties of dune sand concrete containing coffee waste

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mohamed Guendouz

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In the last years, an increase of coffee beverages consumption has been observed all over the world; and its consumption increases the waste coffee grounds which will become an environmental problems. Recycling of this waste to produce new materials like sand concrete appears as one of the best solutions for reduces the problem of pollution. This work aims to study the possibility of recycling waste coffee grounds (Spent Coffee Grounds (SCG as a fine aggregate by replacing the sand in the manufacturing of dune sand concrete. For this; sand concrete mixes were prepared with substitution of sand with the spent coffee grounds waste at different percentage (0%, 5%, 10%, 15% and 20% by volume of the sand in order to study the influence of this wastes on physical (Workability, bulk density and porosity, mechanical (compressive and flexural strength and Thermal (Thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity properties of dune sand concrete. The results showed that the use of spent coffee grounds waste as partial replacement of natural sand contributes to reduce workability, bulk density and mechanical strength of sand concrete mixes with an increase on its porosity. However, the thermal characteristics are improved and especially for a level of 15% and 20% of substitution. So, it is possible to obtain an insulating material which can be used in the various types of structural components. This study ensures that reusing of waste coffee grounds in dune sand concrete gives a positive approach to reduce the cost of materials and solve some environmental problems.

Experimental Investigation and Prediction of Compressive Strength of Ultra-High Performance Concrete Containing Supplementary Cementitious Materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jisong Zhang

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC has superior mechanical properties and durability to normal strength concrete. However, the high amount of cement, high environmental impact, and initial cost are regarded as disadvantages, restricting its wider application. Incorporation of supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs in UHPC is an effective way to reduce the amount of cement needed while contributing to the sustainability and cost. This paper investigates the mechanical properties and microstructure of UHPC containing fly ash (FA and silica fume (SF with the aim of contributing to this issue. The results indicate that, on the basis of 30% FA replacement, the incorporation of 10% and 20% SF showed equivalent or higher mechanical properties compared to the reference samples. The microstructure and pore volume of the UHPCs were also examined. Furthermore, to minimise the experimental workload of future studies, a prediction model is developed to predict the compressive strength of the UHPC using artificial neural networks (ANNs. The results indicate that the developed ANN model has high accuracy and can be used for the prediction of the compressive strength of UHPC with these SCMs.

Pore structure modification of cement concretes by impregnation with sulfur-containing compounds

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

YANAKHMETOV Marat Rafisovich

2015-02-01

Full Text Available The authors study how the impregnation with sulfur-containing compounds changes the concrete pore structure and how it influences on the water absorption and watertightness. The results of this research indicate that impregnation of cement concrete with water-based solution of polysulphide modifies pore structure of cement concrete in such a way that it decreases total and effective porosity, reduces water absorption and increases watertightness. The proposed impregnation based on mineral helps to protect for a long time the most vulnerable parts of buildings – basements, foundations, as well as places on the facades of buildings exposed to rain, snow and groundwater. Application of the new product in the construction industry can increase the durability of materials, preventing the destruction processes caused by weathering, remove excess moisture in damp basements. The surfaces treated by protective compounds acquire antisoiling properties for a long time, and due to reduced thermal conductivity the cost of heating buildings is decreased. The effectiveness of the actions and the relatively low cost of proposed hydrophobizator makes it possible to spread widely the proposed protection method for building structures.

Ultrafine particles in concrete: Influence of ultrafine particles on concrete properties and application to concrete mix design

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vogt, Carsten

2010-07-01

In this work, the influence of ultrafine particles on concrete properties was investigated. In the context of this work, ultrafine particles (reactive and inert materials) are particles finer than cement. Due to the development of effective superplasticizers, the incorporation of ultrafine particles in concrete is nowadays possible. Different minerals, usually considered inert, were tested. These minerals were also used in combination with reactive silica fume. The modified Andreassen model was used to optimise the particle size distribution and thus the packing density of the complete mix composition. Heat of hydration, compressive strength, shrinkage, frost resistance and the microstructure were investigated.The influence of different ultrafine inert materials on the cement hydration was investigated. The results show that most of the minerals have an accelerating effect. They provide nucleation sites for hydration products and contribute in that way to a faster dissolution of cement grains. Minerals containing calcium were found to influence the early stage of hydration as well. These minerals shortened the dormant period of the cement hydration, the effect is known from limestone filler in self-compacting concrete. In a first test series on concrete, different ultrafine inert particles were used to replace cement. That was done in several ways; with constant water content or constant w/c. The results from this test series show that the best effect is achieved when cement is replaced by suitable ultrafines while the w/c is kept constant. In doing so, the compressive strength can be increased and shrinkage can be reduced. The microstructure is improved and becomes denser with improved packing at microlevel. Efficiency factors (k values) for the ultrafine inert materials were calculated from the compressive strength results. The k values are strongly dependent on the mode of cement replacement, fineness and type of the replacement material and curing time. Drying

Optimization of concrete containers composition in radioactive waste conditioning technology; Optimizacija sastava betona za izradu kontejnera u tehnologiji kondicioniranja radioaktivnih otpadnih materijala

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mihajlovic, Lj; Plecas, I; Kostadinovic, A [Institut za Nuklearne Nauke Boris Kidric, Belgrade (Yugoslavia)

1984-07-01

In this paper a possibility of optimization of a concrete container composition, used for storing radioactive waste from nuclear power plants, is presented. A mathematical model is given, which permits maximization of the compressive strength and minimization of leakage and permeability. An optimal solution based on experimental data is given. (author)

Evaluation of tritiated water retention capacity of fusion reactor concrete building

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Numata, S.; Fujii, Y.; Okamoto, M.

1992-01-01

In this paper the diffusion of tritiated water vapor into concrete walls is studied to evaluate tritiated water retention capacity of a fusion reactor concrete building. Using a model of the tritiated water diffusion determined form experimental results, depth profiles of tritiated water in concrete are calculated in the case of being exposed to air containing tritiated water vapor during the normal operational condition of a fusion reactor. A 0.5-m-thick concrete is sufficient for reactor hall walls from a viewpoint of the tritium containment

Effect of Micro-Teaching Practices with Concrete Models on Pre-Service Mathematics Teachers' Self-Efficacy Beliefs about Using Concrete Models

Science.gov (United States)

Ünlü, Melihan

2018-01-01

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the effect of micro-teaching practices with concrete models on the pre-service teachers' self-efficacy beliefs about using concrete models and to determine the opinions of the pre-service teachers about this issue. In the current study, one of the mixed methods, the convergent design (embedded)…

Study on Concrete Containing Recycled Aggregates Immersed in Epoxy Resin

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adnan Suraya Hani

2017-01-01

Full Text Available In recent decades, engineers have sought a more sustainable method to dispose of concrete construction and demolition waste. One solution is to crush this waste concrete into a usable gradation for new concrete mixes. This not only reduces the amount of waste entering landfills but also alleviates the burden on existing sources of quality natural concrete aggregates. There are too many kinds of waste but here constructions waste will be the priority target that should be solved. It could be managed by several ways such as recycling and reusing the concrete components, and the best choice of these components is the aggregate, because of the ease process of recycle it. In addition, recycled aggregates and normal aggregates were immersed in epoxy resin and put in concrete mixtures with 0%, 5%, 10% and 20% which affected the concrete mixtures properties. The strength of the concrete for both normal and recycled aggregates has increased after immersed the aggregates in epoxy resin. The percentage of water absorption and the coefficient of water permeability decreased with the increasing of the normal and the recycled aggregates immersed in epoxy resin. Generally the tests which have been conducted to the concrete mixtures have a significant results after using the epoxy resin with both normal and recycled aggregates.

Modelling of cracking and inelastic behaviour of reinforced concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Young, A.G.; Albana, M.O.

1989-09-01

The report contains a review of work available in the literature on local bond transfer and the main factors which influence it, involving deformed reinfocing bar. Possible load transfer mechanisms are investigated and the significance of secondary cracking, local consolidation and shearing assessed. On the basis of these studies a linkage element which realistically models bond action, and is applicable to both monotonic and cyclic load, is proposed. Its ability to accurately predict stress, strain and crack geometry in typical reinforced concrete components is demonstrated by comparison of the results of finite element analysis using this model with experimental data. Aspects requiring further research are identified. An analysis of the dynamic response of a reinforced concrete beam is given which makes the simplifying assumption of rigid-plastic behaviour. A comparison of the analytical solution with experimental results obtained by bend tests in the Large Dynamic Test Facility at Ispra shows that, despite the neglect of elastic vibrations, a reasonable prediction of the fundamental response is obtained providing due allowance is made for rate-of-strain effects

Inspection of a large concrete block containing embedded defects using ground penetrating radar

Science.gov (United States)

Eisenmann, David; Margetan, Frank J.; Koester, Lucas; Clayton, Dwight

2016-02-01

Ground penetrating radar (GPR), also known as impulse response radar, was used to examine a thick concrete block containing reinforcing steel bars (rebar) and embedded defects. The block was located at the University of Minnesota, measured approximately 7 feet tall by 7 feet wide by 40 inches deep, and was intended to simulate certain aspects of a concrete containment wall at a nuclear power plant. This paper describes the measurements that were made and various analyses of the data. We begin with a description of the block itself and the GPR equipment and methods used in our inspections. The methods include the application of synthetic aperture focusing techniques (SAFT). We then present and discuss GPR images of the block's interior made using 1600-MHz, 900-MHz, and 400-MHz antennas operating in pulse/echo mode. A number of the embedded defects can be seen, and we discuss how their relative detectability can be quantified by comparison to the response from nearby rebar. We next discuss through-transmission measurements made using pairs of 1600-MHz and 900-MHz antennas, and the analysis of that data to deduce the average electromagnetic (EM) wave speed and attenuation of the concrete. Through the 40-inch thickness, attenuation rises approximately linearly with frequency at a rate near 0.7 dB/inch/GHz. However, there is evidence that EM properties vary with depth in the block. We conclude with a brief summary and a discussion of possible future work.

TRANSPORT THROUGH CRACKED CONCRETE: LITERATURE REVIEW

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Langton, C.

2012-05-11

Concrete containment structures and cement-based fills and waste forms are used at the Savannah River Site to enhance the performance of shallow land disposal systems designed for containment of low-level radioactive waste. Understanding and measuring transport through cracked concrete is important for describing the initial condition of radioactive waste containment structures at the Savannah River Site (SRS) and for predicting performance of these structures over time. This report transmits the results of a literature review on transport through cracked concrete which was performed by Professor Jason Weiss, Purdue University per SRR0000678 (RFP-RQ00001029-WY). This review complements the NRC-sponsored literature review and assessment of factors relevant to performance of grouted systems for radioactive waste disposal. This review was performed by The Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses, San Antonio, TX, and The University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen Scotland and was focused on tank closure. The objective of the literature review on transport through cracked concrete was to identify information in the open literature which can be applied to SRS transport models for cementitious containment structures, fills, and waste forms. In addition, the literature review was intended to: (1) Provide a framework for describing and classifying cracks in containment structures and cementitious materials used in radioactive waste disposal, (2) Document the state of knowledge and research related to transport through cracks in concrete for various exposure conditions, (3) Provide information or methodology for answering several specific questions related to cracking and transport in concrete, and (4) Provide information that can be used to design experiments on transport through cracked samples and actual structures.

Transport Through Cracked Concrete: Literature Review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langton, C.

2012-01-01

Concrete containment structures and cement-based fills and waste forms are used at the Savannah River Site to enhance the performance of shallow land disposal systems designed for containment of low-level radioactive waste. Understanding and measuring transport through cracked concrete is important for describing the initial condition of radioactive waste containment structures at the Savannah River Site (SRS) and for predicting performance of these structures over time. This report transmits the results of a literature review on transport through cracked concrete which was performed by Professor Jason Weiss, Purdue University per SRR0000678 (RFP-RQ00001029-WY). This review complements the NRC-sponsored literature review and assessment of factors relevant to performance of grouted systems for radioactive waste disposal. This review was performed by The Center for Nuclear Waste Regulatory Analyses, San Antonio, TX, and The University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen Scotland and was focused on tank closure. The objective of the literature review on transport through cracked concrete was to identify information in the open literature which can be applied to SRS transport models for cementitious containment structures, fills, and waste forms. In addition, the literature review was intended to: (1) Provide a framework for describing and classifying cracks in containment structures and cementitious materials used in radioactive waste disposal, (2) Document the state of knowledge and research related to transport through cracks in concrete for various exposure conditions, (3) Provide information or methodology for answering several specific questions related to cracking and transport in concrete, and (4) Provide information that can be used to design experiments on transport through cracked samples and actual structures.

Durability and safety of concrete structures in the nuclear context. The case of the containment vessel

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Torrenti, J.M. [Universite Paris Est, LCPC (France); Nahas, G. [IRSN/DSR (France)

2011-07-01

The durability of structures, because of its economic and environmental implications, is one of the actual hot topics in civil engineering. In the field of nuclear energy, we are facing very challenging problems like: how could we prolong the service life of actual nuclear containments and how can we assure the durability of a radioactive storage on the very long term (several centuries)? These already difficult questions in a classical civil engineering view are even more complicated in the field of nuclear energy where the structures are massive and the safety of the installations has to be considered. For the containment of nuclear power plants, these stakes will be lit with some examples of research concerning the mechanical behaviour of concrete and concrete structures (at early age, in service on long scales of time and in the event of an accident), the durability of the concrete structures (leaching, swelling due to delayed ettringite formation - DEF -) and the couplings between mechanics and durability. Finally, the importance of probabilistic aspects and the inherent difficulties will be shown. (authors)

Durability and safety of concrete structures in the nuclear context. The case of the containment vessel

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Torrenti, J.M.; Nahas, G.

2011-01-01

The durability of structures, because of its economic and environmental implications, is one of the actual hot topics in civil engineering. In the field of nuclear energy, we are facing very challenging problems like: how could we prolong the service life of actual nuclear containments and how can we assure the durability of a radioactive storage on the very long term (several centuries)? These already difficult questions in a classical civil engineering view are even more complicated in the field of nuclear energy where the structures are massive and the safety of the installations has to be considered. For the containment of nuclear power plants, these stakes will be lit with some examples of research concerning the mechanical behaviour of concrete and concrete structures (at early age, in service on long scales of time and in the event of an accident), the durability of the concrete structures (leaching, swelling due to delayed ettringite formation - DEF -) and the couplings between mechanics and durability. Finally, the importance of probabilistic aspects and the inherent difficulties will be shown. (authors)

Mathematical Model to Predict the Permeability of Water Transport in Concrete Structure

OpenAIRE

Solomon Ndubuisi Eluozo

2013-01-01

Mathematical model to predict the permeability of water transport in concrete has been established, the model is to monitor the rate of water transport in concrete structure. The process of this water transport is based on the constituent in the mixture of concrete. Permeability established a relation on the influence of the micropores on the constituent that made of concrete, the method of concrete placement determine the rate of permeability deposition in concrete structure, permeability es...

Contributions to the nonlinear modeling of the mechanical behaviour of concrete and of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Abbas, Krayani

2007-12-01

The knowledge of the mechanical behaviour of the material and its loading history (at any point of the structure) is necessary to evaluate the tightness of a containment structure and therefore its durability. An elastic plastic non local damage model is developed for modelling the mechanical behaviour of concrete. A regularization technique is introduced on the part responsible of the strain-softening behaviour in order to avoid the numerical problems due to the phenomenon of localisation of damage. The constitutive law and its numerical implementation are detailed. The consistent tangent matrix is derived, where the numerical differentiation technique is applied to integrate plastic constitutive laws and to obtain a quadratic convergence with the Newton-Raphson method at Gauss-point level and in the solution of the boundary value problem. Simulations have shown the capacity of the model to reproduce the classical and complex structural behaviour of concrete. The comparisons with the isotropic damage models illustrate the improvements achieved by introducing the plasticity to the damage formulation: the mode of failure is reproduced correctly (mode I and mixed mode) and the ultimate load is in good agreement with the experimental data. Finally, we present modifications of the classical non local damage model in order to take into account the boundary effects. Our justification is based on micro-mechanical arguments in which the interactions between microcracks are reduced nearby the free boundary. (author)

Effects on concrete from borated water and boric compounds cast into the concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fagerlund, Goeran

2010-06-01

A study has been made of the effects on concrete of its exposure to external water containing boric acid, and the effects on concrete of boric compounds cast into the concrete during its manufacture. According to information in literature boric acid is a weak Lewis acid that has no effect on concrete. Reaction between calcium hydroxide existing in concrete and boric acid might occur at the concrete surface. The reaction product formed (calcium-metaboritehexahydrate) has lower solubility than calcium hydroxide itself. Therefore, the reaction is reasonably harmless. Accelerated and non-accelerated test methods exist by which quantitative information on the effect of boric acid can be obtained. The test principles are described. Boron-containing compounds might be mixed into concrete in order to increase its resistance to neutron radiation. Pure boron minerals, as well as boron-containing residual materials from processing of natural boron minerals, might be used. Concrete might be affected with regard to the following properties: - Workability of the fresh concrete; - Stiffening and hardening of the concrete; - Strength (compression, tension); - Deformation (E-modulus, creep); - Durability (chemical, steel corrosion. Information in literature indicates that the hardening process might be severely affected also when rather small amounts of certain boron-containing materials are used. The effect seems to be small, or none, however, if materials with low solubility are used. The effect on workability seems to be marginal. Test methods exist by which it is practical possible to develop acceptable concrete recipes. The effects on mechanical properties are not well clarified by research. However, effects seem to be small when boron materials with low solubility are used. In one study, in which part of the cement was replaced by a boron containing colemanite waste, it was found that the E-modulus was very much reduced. The significance of this result is unclear. The

Constitutive equations for cracked reinforced concrete based on a refined model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geistefeldt, H.

1977-01-01

Nonlinear numerical methods to calculate structures of reinforced concrete or of prestressed concrete are mostly based on two idealizing assumptions: tension stiffness perpendicular to cracks is equal to the stiffness of reinforcement alone and shear modulus is taken as constant. In real reinforced concrete structures concrete contributes to the tension-stiffness perpendicular to cracks and thus to the global stiffness matrix because of bond action between concrete and reinforcement and shear transfer in cracks is depending on stresses acting in cracks. Only few authors are taking these aspects into account and only with rough semiempirical assumptions. In this paper a refined nonlinear three-dimensional mechanical model for reinforced concrete is presented which can include these effects, hitherto neglected, depending on the given state of stress. The model is composed of three model-elements: component u - uncracked reinforced concrete with perfect bond (stiffness equal to the sum of the stiffnesses of concrete and reinforcement), component r - reinforcement free in surrounding concrete (reinforcement and concrete are having equal normal strains in noncracked directions and equal shear strains), component c - crack-part (shear stiffnesses in cracks is equal to the sum of shear stiffnesses of the reinforcement mesh, interface shear transfer and dowel action in cracks). (Auth.)

Properties of concrete containing scrap-tire rubber--an overview.

Science.gov (United States)

Siddique, Rafat; Naik, Tarun R

2004-01-01

Solid waste management is one of the major environmental concerns in the United States. Over 5 billion tons of non-hazardous solid waste materials are generated in USA each year. Of these, more than 270 million scrap-tires (approximately 3.6 million tons) are generated each year. In addition to this, about 300 million scrap-tires have been stockpiled. Several studies have been carried out to reuse scrap-tires in a variety of rubber and plastic products, incineration for production of electricity, or as fuel for cement kilns, as well as in asphalt concrete. Studies show that workable rubberized concrete mixtures can be made with scrap-tire rubber. This paper presents an overview of some of the research published regarding the use of scrap-tires in portland cement concrete. The benefits of using magnesium oxychloride cement as a binder for rubberized concrete mixtures are also presented. The paper details the likely uses of rubberized concrete.

Nonlinear finite element modeling of concrete deep beams with openings strengthened with externally-bonded composites

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hawileh, Rami A.; El-Maaddawy, Tamer A.; Naser, Mohannad Z.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► A 3D nonlinear FE model is developed of RC deep beams with web openings. ► We used cohesion elements to simulate bond. ► The developed FE model is suitable for analysis of such complex structures. -- Abstract: This paper aims to develop 3D nonlinear finite element (FE) models for reinforced concrete (RC) deep beams containing web openings and strengthened in shear with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composite sheets. The web openings interrupted the natural load path either fully or partially. The FE models adopted realistic materials constitutive laws that account for the nonlinear behavior of materials. In the FE models, solid elements for concrete, multi-layer shell elements for CFRP and link elements for steel reinforcement were used to simulate the physical models. Special interface elements were implemented in the FE models to simulate the interfacial bond behavior between the concrete and CFRP composites. A comparison between the FE results and experimental data published in the literature demonstrated the validity of the computational models in capturing the structural response for both unstrengthened and CFRP-strengthened deep beams with openings. The developed FE models can serve as a numerical platform for performance prediction of RC deep beams with openings strengthened in shear with CFRP composites.

Modeling of crack propagation in strengthened concrete disks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hansen, Christian Skodborg; Stang, Henrik

2013-01-01

Crack propagation in strengthened concrete disks is a problem that has not yet been addressed properly. To investigate it, a cracked half-infinite disk of concrete is strengthened with a linear elastic material bonded to the surface, and analyzed using two different finite element modeling...... instead of 3D calculations to predict the response of a structure and that it opens up for simpler evaluation of strengthened concrete structures using the finite element method....

Integrated modelling of corrosion-induced deterioration in rein-forced concrete structures

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michel, Alexander; Geiker, M.R.; Stang, Henrik

2013-01-01

at the reinforcement surface, a FEM based me-chanical model was used to simulate corrosion-induced concrete damage. Both FEM models were fully coupled, i.e. information, such as corrosion current density, dam-age state of concrete cover, etc., were constantly exchanged between the models. To demonstrate the potential......An integrated finite element based modelling approach is presented, which allows for fully coupled simulation of reinforcement corrosion and corrosion-induced concrete damage. While a finite element method (FEM) based corrosion model was used to describe electrochemical processes...... use of the modelling approach, a numerical example is presented which illustrates full coupling of formation of corrosion cells, propagation of corrosion, and subsequent development of corrosion-induced concrete damage....

Compressive strength performance of OPS lightweight aggregate concrete containing coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement

Science.gov (United States)

Muthusamy, K.; Mohamad Hafizuddin, R.; Mat Yahaya, F.; Sulaiman, M. A.; Syed Mohsin, S. M.; Tukimat, N. N.; Omar, R.; Chin, S. C.

2018-04-01

Concerns regarding the negative impact towards environment due to the increasing use of natural sand in construction industry and dumping of industrial solid wastes namely coal bottom ash (CBA) and oil palm shell (OPS) has resulted in the development of environmental friendly lightweight concrete. The present study investigates the effect of coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement towards workability and compressive strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete (OPS LWAC). The fresh and mechanical properties of this concrete containing various percentage of coal bottom ash as partial fine aggregate replacement were investigated. The result was compared to OPS LWAC with 100 % sand as a control specimen. The concrete workability investigated by conducting slump test. All specimens were cast in form of cubes and water cured until the testing age. The compressive strength test was carried out at 7 and 28 days. The finding shows that integration of coal bottom ash at suitable proportion enhances the strength of oil palm shell lightweight aggregate concrete.

Utilization of waste glass in translucent and photocatalytic concrete

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Spiesz, P.; Rouvas, S.; Brouwers, H.J.H.

2016-01-01

Abstract This article addresses the development of a translucent and air purifying concrete containing waste glass. The concrete composition was optimized applying the modified Andreasen & Andersen model to obtain a densely packed system of granular ingredients. Both untreated (unwashed) and washed

Elasto-viscoplastic finite element model for prestressed concrete structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Prates Junior, N.P.; Silva, C.S.B.; Campos Filho, A.; Gastal, F.P.S.L.

1995-01-01

This paper presents a computational model, based on the finite element method, for the study of reinforced and prestressed concrete structures under plane stress states. It comprehends short and long-term loading situations, where creep and shrinkage in concrete and steel relaxation are considered. Elasto-viscoplastic constitutive models are used to describe the behavior of the materials. The model includes prestressing and no prestressing reinforcement, on situation with pre- and post-tension with and without bond. A set of prestressed concrete slab elements were tested under instantaneous and long-term loading. The experimental data for deflections, deformations and ultimate strength are used to compare and validate the results obtained through the proposed model. (author). 11 refs., 5 figs

Properties of concrete containing different type of waste materials as aggregate replacement exposed to elevated temperature – A review

Science.gov (United States)

Ghadzali, N. S.; Ibrahim, M. H. W.; Sani, M. S. H. Mohd; Jamaludin, N.; Desa, M. S. M.; Misri, Z.

2018-04-01

Concrete is the chief material of construction and it is non-combustible in nature. However, the exposure to the high temperature such as fire can lead to change in the concrete properties. Due to the higher temperature, several changes in terms of mechanical properties were observed in concrete such as compressive strength, modulus of elasticity, tensile strength and durability of concrete will decrease significantly at high temperature. The exceptional fire-proof achievement of concrete is might be due to the constituent materials of concrete such as its aggregates. The extensive use of aggregate in concrete will leads to depletion of natural resources. Hence, the use of waste and other recycled and by-product material as aggregates replacements becomes a leading research. This review has been made on the utilization of waste materials in concrete and critically evaluates its effects on the concrete performances during the fire exposure. Therefore, the objective of this paper is to review the previous search work regarding the concrete containing waste material as aggregates replacement when exposed to elevated temperature and come up with different design recommendations to improve the fire resistance of structures.

Conservation of concrete structures according to fib Model Code 2010

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Matthews, S.; Bigaj-Van Vliet, A.; Ueda, T.

2013-01-01

Conservation of concrete structures forms an essential part of the fib Model Code for Concrete Structures 2010 (fib Model Code 2010). In particular, Chapter 9 of fib Model Code 2010 addresses issues concerning conservation strategies and tactics, conservation management, condition surveys, condition

The moisture conditions of nuclear reactor concrete containment walls - an example for a BWR reactor

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nilsson, L.O.; Johansson, P. [Lund Institute of Technology, Laboratory of Building Materials, PO Box 118, 221 00 Lund (Sweden)

2006-07-01

A method is presented on how to quantify the moisture conditions of nuclear concrete containment walls. The method is based on first quantifying the boundary conditions at the outer and inner surfaces and then describing the moisture fixation and moisture transport within the concrete wall. The temperature and humidity conditions of the outdoor air and of the air close to the wall surfaces are monitored for a period of time and the vapour contents in the different points are compared. From the differences between the vapour contents the sources of moisture are identified and quantified. The previous and future climatic conditions are then predicted. An example is given for the conditions in the containment walls at Barsebaeck nuclear power plant, where moisture measurements have been performed in situ and on samples taken from the walls. (authors)

Nuclear Power Plant Prestressed Concrete Containment Vessel Structure Monitoring during Integrated Leakage Rate Testing Using Fiber Bragg Grating Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jinke Li

2017-04-01

Full Text Available As the last barrier of nuclear reactor, prestressed concrete containment vessels (PCCVs play an important role in nuclear power plants (NPPs. To test the mechanical property of PCCV during the integrated leakage rate testing (ILRT, a fiber Bragg grating (FBG sensor was used to monitor concrete strain. In addition, a finite element method (FEM model was built to simulate the progress of the ILRT. The results showed that the strain monitored by FBG had the same trend compared to the inner pressure variation. The calculation results showed a similar trend compared with the monitoring results and provided much information about the locations in which the strain sensors should be installed. Therefore, it is confirmed that FBG sensors and FEM simulation are very useful in PCCV structure monitoring.

Probability based load factors for design of concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, H.; Kagami, S.; Reich, M.; Ellingwood, B.; Shinozuka, M.

1985-01-01

This paper describes a procedure for developing probability-based load combinations for the design of concrete containments. The proposed criteria are in a load and resistance factor design (LRFD) format. The load factors and resistance factors are derived for use in limit states design and are based on a target limit state probability. In this paper, the load factors for accident pressure and safe shutdown earthquake are derived for three target limit state probabilities. Other load factors are recommended on the basis of prior experience with probability-based design criteria for ordinary building construction. 6 refs

Mechanical properties of cement concrete composites containing nano-metakaolin

Science.gov (United States)

Supit, Steve Wilben Macquarie; Rumbayan, Rilya; Ticoalu, Adriana

2017-11-01

The use of nano materials in building construction has been recognized because of its high specific surface area, very small particle sizes and more amorphous nature of particles. These characteristics lead to increase the mechanical properties and durability of cement concrete composites. Metakaolin is one of the supplementary cementitious materials that has been used to replace cement in concrete. Therefore, it is interesting to investigate the effectiveness of metakaolin (in nano scale) in improving the mechanical properties including compressive strength, tensile strength and flexural strength of cement concretes. In this experiment, metakaolin was pulverized by using High Energy Milling before adding to the concrete mixes. The pozzolan Portland cement was replaced with 5% and 10% nano-metakaolin (by wt.). The result shows that the optimum amount of nano-metakaolin in cement concrete mixes is 10% (by wt.). The improvement in compressive strength is approximately 123% at 3 days, 85% at 7 days and 53% at 28 days, respectively. The tensile and flexural strength results also showed the influence of adding 10% nano-metakaolin (NK-10) in improving the properties of cement concrete (NK-0). Furthermore, the Backscattered Electron images and X-Ray Diffraction analysis were evaluated to support the above findings. The results analysis confirm the pores modification due to nano-metakaolin addition, the consumption of calcium hydroxide (CH) and the formation of Calcium Silicate Hydrate (CSH) gel as one of the beneficial effects of amorphous nano-metakaolin in improving the mechanical properties and densification of microstructure of mortar and concrete.

Prediction model for carbonation depth of concrete subjected to freezing-thawing cycles

Science.gov (United States)

Xiao, Qian Hui; Li, Qiang; Guan, Xiao; Xian Zou, Ying

2018-03-01

Through the indoor simulation test of the concrete durability under the coupling effect of freezing-thawing and carbonation, the variation regularity of concrete neutralization depth under freezing-thawing and carbonation was obtained. Based on concrete carbonation mechanism, the relationship between the air diffusion coefficient and porosity in concrete was analyzed and the calculation method of porosity in Portland cement concrete and fly ash cement concrete was investigated, considering the influence of the freezing-thawing damage on the concrete diffusion coefficient. Finally, a prediction model of carbonation depth of concrete under freezing-thawing circumstance was established. The results obtained using this prediction model agreed well with the experimental test results, and provided a theoretical reference and basis for the concrete durability analysis under multi-factor environments.

Loading functions generated by solid explosive detonations inside concrete containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Freund, H.W.; Schumann, S.; Rischbieter, F.; Schmitz, C.

1989-01-01

Partial dismantling of concrete structures by controlled blasting is being considered for nuclear power reactor decommissioning /1,2/. Quantitative prediction of both the desired destructive effects and the side effects caused by the dynamic load is based on knowledge of the time dependent forces acting on the structure, availability of data abut the dynamic material properties, realistic structural models. This work describes investigations performed to obtain time dependent forces for the case where solid explosive charges embedded into concrete are being detonated. The resulting multi component loading function is shown to constitute a set of input data for pre-test safety calculations of the building vibrational response

Smeared crack modelling approach for corrosion-induced concrete damage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thybo, Anna Emilie Anusha; Michel, Alexander; Stang, Henrik

2017-01-01

In this paper a smeared crack modelling approach is used to simulate corrosion-induced damage in reinforced concrete. The presented modelling approach utilizes a thermal analogy to mimic the expansive nature of solid corrosion products, while taking into account the penetration of corrosion...... products into the surrounding concrete, non-uniform precipitation of corrosion products, and creep. To demonstrate the applicability of the presented modelling approach, numerical predictions in terms of corrosion-induced deformations as well as formation and propagation of micro- and macrocracks were......-induced damage phenomena in reinforced concrete. Moreover, good agreements were also found between experimental and numerical data for corrosion-induced deformations along the circumference of the reinforcement....

Use of limestone powder during incorporation of Pb-containing cathode ray tube waste in self-compacting concrete.

Science.gov (United States)

Sua-iam, Gritsada; Makul, Natt

2013-10-15

For several decades, cathode ray tubes (CRTs) were the primary display component of televisions and computers. The CRT glass envelope contains sufficient levels of lead oxide (PbO) to be considered hazardous, and there is a need for effective methods of permanently encapsulating this material during waste disposal. We examined the effect of adding limestone powder (LS) on the fresh and cured properties of self-compacting concrete (SCC) mixtures containing waste CRT glass. The SCC mixtures were prepared using Type 1 Portland cement at a constant cement content of 600 kg/m(3) and a water-to-cement ratio (w/c) of 0.38. CRT glass waste cullet was blended with river sand in proportions of 20 or 40% by weight. To suppress potential viscosity effects limestone powder was added at levels of 5, 10, or 15% by weight. The slump flow time, slump flow diameter, V-funnel flow time, Marsh cone flow time, and setting time of the fresh concrete were tested, as well as the compressive strength and ultrasonic pulse velocity of the hardened concrete. Addition of limestone powder improved the fresh and hardened properties. Pb leaching levels from the cured concrete were within US EPA allowable limits. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Modeling and conduct of turbine missile concrete impact experiments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Woodfin, R.L.

1981-01-01

The overall objective of the subject experiments was to provide full scale data on the response of reinforced concrete containment walls to impact and penetration by postulated turbine-produced missiles. These data can be used to validate analytical or scale modeling methods and to assess the applicability of current design formulas to penetration by large, irregularly shaped missiles. These data and results will be used in providing more realistic estimates of turbine missile damage probability in nuclear power plants with a non-peninsula arrangement. This paper describes the derivation of the test matrix and the method of conducting the experiments. (orig./HP)

Multi-physical and multi-scale deterioration modelling of re-inforced concrete: modelling corrosion-induced concrete damage

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Michel, Alexander; Lepech, Michael; Stang, Henrik

2016-01-01

for the discretization of the concrete domain. To model the expansive nature of solid corrosion products, a thermal analogy is used. The modelling approach further accounts for the penetration of solid corrosion products into the available pore space of the surrounding cementitious materials and non-uniform distribution...

A p-version embedded model for simulation of concrete temperature fields with cooling pipes

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Sheng Qiang

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Pipe cooling is an effective method of mass concrete temperature control, but its accurate and convenient numerical simulation is still a cumbersome problem. An improved embedded model, considering the water temperature variation along the pipe, was proposed for simulating the temperature field of early-age concrete structures containing cooling pipes. The improved model was verified with an engineering example. Then, the p-version self-adaption algorithm for the improved embedded model was deduced, and the initial values and boundary conditions were examined. Comparison of some numerical samples shows that the proposed model can provide satisfying precision and a higher efficiency. The analysis efficiency can be doubled at the same precision, even for a large-scale element. The p-version algorithm can fit grids of different sizes for the temperature field simulation. The convenience of the proposed algorithm lies in the possibility of locating more pipe segments in one element without the need of so regular a shape as in the explicit model.

Continuous and Discontinuous Modelling of Fracture in Concrete Using FEM

CERN Document Server

Tejchman, Jacek

2013-01-01

The book analyzes a quasi-static fracture process in concrete and reinforced concrete by means of constitutive models formulated within continuum mechanics. A continuous and discontinuous modelling approach was used. Using a continuous approach, numerical analyses were performed using a finite element method and three different enhanced continuum models: isotropic elasto-plastic, isotropic damage and anisotropic smeared crack one. The models were equipped with a characteristic length of micro-structure by means of a non-local and a second-gradient theory. So they could properly describe the formation of localized zones with a certain thickness and spacing and a related deterministic size effect. Using a discontinuous FE approach, numerical results of cracks using a cohesive crack model and XFEM were presented which were also properly regularized. Finite element analyses were performed with concrete elements under monotonic uniaxial compression, uniaxial tension, bending and shear-extension. Concrete beams un...

Constitutive equations for cracked reinforced concrete based on a refined model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geistefeldt, H.

1977-01-01

In this paper a refined nonlinear three-dimensional mechanical model for reinforced concrete is presented which can include the effects, depending on the given state of stress. The model is composed of three model-elements: component u-uncracked reinforced concrete with perfect bond (stiffness equal to the sum of the stiffnesses of concrete and reinforcement), component r-reinforcement free in surrounding concrete (reinforcement and concrete are having equal normal strains in noncracked directions and equal shear strains), component c-crack-part (shear stiffnesses in cracks is equal to the sum of shear stiffnesses of the reinforcement mesh, interface shear transfer and dowel action in cracks). The stress tensor of all components is equal to the global stress tensor. The strains are different from component to component corresponding to the local strain distribution in cracked reinforced concrete. For example the uniaxial behavior of reinforced concrete is modelled out of three springs k(u), k(r) and k(c) in series each having variable length l(u), l(r) or l(c). The uncracked structure is represented by k(u) only, l(r) and l(c) are zero. After cracking l(r) and l(c) are growing with the tensile load. When concrete tension stiffness between cracks has diminished, l(u) has reached the zero-value. The stress-dependent weights of the components in the model are derived from uniaxial theory and uniaxial test results

Long-term properties of concrete in nuclear containment structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Field, S.N.; Bamforth, P.B.

1991-01-01

Over the last thirty years a large volume of testing has been carried out on concretes used in prestressed concrete pressure vessels and similar structures. The main aim of the work has been to provide the designers with a prediction method for elastic moduli and creep deformation which takes into account temperature and age at loading. This paper summarises and reviews the results from the six concretes tested by Taywood Engineering Ltd (T.E.L.), comparing mixes with and without PFA. (author)

Modeling and Simulation of Electromutagenic Processes for Multiscale Modification of Concrete

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Daniela S. Mainardi

2009-04-01

Full Text Available Concrete contains numerous pores that allow degradation when chloride ions migrate through these paths and make contact with the steel reinforcement in a structure. Chlorides come mainly from the sea or de-icing salts. To keep the reinforcement from being exposed to chlorides, it is possible to electrokinetically force nanoparticles into the pores, blocking access. This procedure is called electrokinetic nanoparticle treatment. When the particles used are reactive in nature, the process becomes both structural and chemical in nature. We use the term electromutagenic processing to describe such extensive electrochemical remodeling. Filling the pores in a block of concrete with solid materials or nanoparticles tends to improve the strength significantly. In this paper, results obtained from modeling and simulation were aimed at multi-scale porosity reduction of concrete. Since nanoparticles and pores were modeled with spheres and cylinders having different sizes, the results were compared with traditional sphere packing problems in mathematics. There were significant differences observed related to the sizes of spheres and allowable boundary conditions. From traditional sphere packing analysis the highest porosity reduction anticipated was 74%. In contrast, the highest pore reduction obtained in this work was approximately 50%, which matched results from actual electrokinetic nanoparticle treatments. This work also compared the analytical and simulation methods used for several sizes of nanoparticles and pores.

Experimental investigation of the fatigue behaviour of asphalt concrete mixtures containing waste iron powder

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arabani, M.; Mirabdolazimi, S.M.

2011-01-01

Research highlights: → This paper presents the first model of the fatigue behaviour of iron-asphalt mixtures in the world. → This model is able to describe the fatigue behaviour of iron-asphalt under dynamic loading. → Coarse surface, high stiffness and angularity of iron powder lead to enhanced fatigue performance. → The model illustrates that the use of iron powder has a considerable effect on tensile strain of HMA. → The use of this type of waste material could be a helpful solution for less polluted environment. - Abstract: The use of additives and admixtures in the construction of asphalt concrete pavements to strengthen them against dynamic loads has increased considerably in recent years. Recent research has shown that employing desirable waste materials in hot mix asphalts (HMAs) improves their dynamic properties noticeably. The study of some special cases, such as the addition of blast furnace slag and metallic materials of waste electronic instruments to HMA, has led to a considerable increase in the ability of HMAs to tolerate fatigue phenomena and repeated loading. Based on experimental studies, a model is proposed to describe the fatigue behaviour of asphalt mixtures containing waste iron powder. The results of this research show an important increase in the strength of asphalt mixtures containing waste iron powder against fatigue phenomena in comparison to conventional HMAs.

Advances in triaxial constitutive modeling of concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bazant, Z.P.

1981-01-01

The paper describes in a summary fashion recent developments, questions, and trends in the mathematical modeling of short-time nonlinear triaxial behavior of concrete, which is of considerable importance for a realistic and reliable prediction of the behavior of nuclear concrete structures. Attention is focused on the problems of internal friction, dilatancy, effect of microcracking, and path-dependence of response. Some typical responses are illustrated graphically. (orig.)

Modeling of concrete response at high temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pfeiffer, P.; Marchertas, A.

1984-01-01

A rate-type creep law is implemented into the computer code TEMP-STRESS for high temperature concrete analysis. The disposition of temperature, pore pressure and moisture for the particular structure in question is provided as input for the thermo-mechanical code. The loss of moisture from concrete also induces material shrinkage which is accounted for in the analytical model. Examples are given to illustrate the numerical results

Numerical approach of the bond stress behavior of steel bars embedded in self-compacting concrete and in ordinary concrete using beam models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

F.M. Almeida Filho

Full Text Available The present study evaluates the bond behavior between steel bars and concrete by means of a numerical analysis based on Finite Element Method. Results of a previously conducted experimental program on reinforced concrete beams subjected to monotonic loading are also presented. Two concrete types, self-compacting concrete and ordinary concrete, were considered in the study. Non-linear constitutive relations were used to represent concrete and steel in the proposed numerical model, aiming to reproduce the bond behavior observed in the tests. Experimental analysis showed similar results for the bond resistances of self-compacting and ordinary concrete, with self-compacting concrete presenting a better performance in some cases. The results given by the numerical modeling showed a good agreement with the tests for both types of concrete, especially in the pre-peak branch of the load vs. slip and load vs. displacement curves. As a consequence, the proposed numerical model could be used to estimate a reliable development length, allowing a possible reduction of the structure costs.

A New Form of Nondestructive Strength-Estimating Statistical Models Accounting for Uncertainty of Model and Aging Effect of Concrete

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hong, Kee Jeung; Kim, Jee Sang

2009-01-01

As concrete ages, the surrounding environment is expected to have growing influences on the concrete. As all the impacts of the environment cannot be considered in the strength-estimating model of a nondestructive concrete test, the increase in concrete age leads to growing uncertainty in the strength-estimating model. Therefore, the variation of the model error increases. It is necessary to include those impacts in the probability model of concrete strength attained from the nondestructive tests so as to build a more accurate reliability model for structural performance evaluation. This paper reviews and categorizes the existing strength-estimating statistical models of nondestructive concrete test, and suggests a new form of the strength-estimating statistical models to properly reflect the model uncertainty due to aging of the concrete. This new form of the statistical models will lay foundation for more accurate structural performance evaluation.

Shrinkage modeling of concrete reinforced by palm fibres in hot dry environments

Science.gov (United States)

Akchiche, Hamida; Kriker, Abdelouahed

2017-02-01

The cement materials, such as concrete and conventional mortar present very little resistance to traction and cracking, these hydraulic materials which induces large withdrawals on materials and cracks in structures. The hot dry environments such as: the Saharan regions of Algeria, Indeed, concrete structures in these regions are very fragile, and present high shrinkage. Strengthening of these materials by fibers can provide technical solutions for improving the mechanical performance. The aim of this study is firstly, to reduce the shrinkage of conventional concrete with its reinforcement with date palm fibers. In fact, Algeria has an extraordinary resources in natural fibers (from Palm, Abaca, Hemp) but without valorization in practical areas, especially in building materials. Secondly, to model the shrinkage behavior of concrete was reinforced by date palm fibers. In the literature, several models for still fiber concrete were founded but few are offers for natural fiber concretes. To do so, a still fiber concretes model of YOUNG - CHERN was used. According to the results, a reduction of shrinkage with reinforcement by date palm fibers was showed. A good ability of molding of shrinkage of date palm reinforced concrete with YOUNG - CHERN Modified model was obtained. In fact, a good correlation between experimental data and the model data was recorded.

Evaluating portland cement concrete degradation by sulphate exposure through artificial neural networks modeling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oliveira, Douglas Nunes de; Bourguignon, Lucas Gabriel Garcia; Tolentino, Evandro; Costa, Rodrigo Moyses; Tello, Cledola Cassia Oliveira de

2015-01-01

A concrete is durable if it has accomplished the desired service life in the environment in which it is exposed. The durability of concrete materials can be limited as a result of adverse performance of its cement-paste matrix or aggregate constituents under either chemical or physical attack. Among other aggressive chemical exposures, the sulphate attack is an important concern. Water, soils and gases, which contain sulphate, represent a potential threat to the durability of concrete structures. Sulphate attack in concrete leads to the conversion of the hydration products of cement to ettringite, gypsum, and other phases, and also it leads to the destabilization of the primary strength generating calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) gel. The formation of ettringite and gypsum is common in cementitious systems exposed to most types of sulphate solutions. The present work presents the application of the neural networks for estimating deterioration of various concrete mixtures due to exposure to sulphate solutions. A neural networks model was constructed, trained and tested using the available database. In general, artificial neural networks could be successfully used in function approximation problems in order to approach the data generation function. Once data generation function is known, artificial neural network structure is tested using data not presented to the network during training. This paper is intent to provide the technical requirements related to the production of a durable concrete to be used in the structures of the Brazilian near-surface repository of radioactive wastes. (author)

Evaluating portland cement concrete degradation by sulphate exposure through artificial neural networks modeling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oliveira, Douglas Nunes de; Bourguignon, Lucas Gabriel Garcia; Tolentino, Evandro, E-mail: tolentino@timoteo.cefetmg.br [Centro Federal de Educacao Tecnologica de Minas Gerais (CEFET-MG), Timoteo, MG (Brazil); Costa, Rodrigo Moyses, E-mail: rodrigo@moyses.com.br [Universidade de Itauna, Itauna, MG (Brazil); Tello, Cledola Cassia Oliveira de, E-mail: tellocc@cdtn.br [Centro de Desenvolvimento da Tecnologia Nucelar (CDTN/CNEN-MG), Belo Horizonte, MG (Brazil)

2015-07-01

A concrete is durable if it has accomplished the desired service life in the environment in which it is exposed. The durability of concrete materials can be limited as a result of adverse performance of its cement-paste matrix or aggregate constituents under either chemical or physical attack. Among other aggressive chemical exposures, the sulphate attack is an important concern. Water, soils and gases, which contain sulphate, represent a potential threat to the durability of concrete structures. Sulphate attack in concrete leads to the conversion of the hydration products of cement to ettringite, gypsum, and other phases, and also it leads to the destabilization of the primary strength generating calcium silicate hydrate (C-S-H) gel. The formation of ettringite and gypsum is common in cementitious systems exposed to most types of sulphate solutions. The present work presents the application of the neural networks for estimating deterioration of various concrete mixtures due to exposure to sulphate solutions. A neural networks model was constructed, trained and tested using the available database. In general, artificial neural networks could be successfully used in function approximation problems in order to approach the data generation function. Once data generation function is known, artificial neural network structure is tested using data not presented to the network during training. This paper is intent to provide the technical requirements related to the production of a durable concrete to be used in the structures of the Brazilian near-surface repository of radioactive wastes. (author)

Modeling approaches for concrete barriers used in low-level waste disposal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seitz, R.R.; Walton, J.C.

1993-11-01

A series of three NUREGs and several papers addressing different aspects of modeling performance of concrete barriers for low-level radioactive waste disposal have been prepared previously for the Concrete Barriers Research Project. This document integrates the information from the previous documents into a general summary of models and approaches that can be used in performance assessments of concrete barriers. Models for concrete degradation, flow, and transport through cracked concrete barriers are discussed. The models for flow and transport assume that cracks have occurred and thus should only be used for later times in simulations after fully penetrating cracks are formed. Most of the models have been implemented in a computer code. CEMENT, that was developed concurrently with this document. User documentation for CEMENT is provided separate from this report. To avoid duplication, the reader is referred to the three previous NUREGs for detailed discussions of each of the mathematical models. Some additional information that was not presented in the previous documents is also included. Sections discussing lessons learned from applications to actual performance assessments of low-level waste disposal facilities are provided. Sensitive design parameters are emphasized to identify critical areas of performance for concrete barriers, and potential problems in performance assessments are also identified and discussed

Mechanical properties of concrete containing a high volume of tire-rubber particles.

Science.gov (United States)

Khaloo, Ali R; Dehestani, M; Rahmatabadi, P

2008-12-01

Due to the increasingly serious environmental problems presented by waste tires, the feasibility of using elastic and flexible tire-rubber particles as aggregate in concrete is investigated in this study. Tire-rubber particles composed of tire chips, crumb rubber, and a combination of tire chips and crumb rubber, were used to replace mineral aggregates in concrete. These particles were used to replace 12.5%, 25%, 37.5%, and 50% of the total mineral aggregate's volume in concrete. Cylindrical shape concrete specimens 15 cm in diameter and 30 cm in height were fabricated and cured. The fresh rubberized concrete exhibited lower unit weight and acceptable workability compared to plain concrete. The results of a uniaxial compressive strain control test conducted on hardened concrete specimens indicate large reductions in the strength and tangential modulus of elasticity. A significant decrease in the brittle behavior of concrete with increasing rubber content is also demonstrated using nonlinearity indices. The maximum toughness index, indicating the post failure strength of concrete, occurs in concretes with 25% rubber content. Unlike plain concrete, the failure state in rubberized concrete occurs gently and uniformly, and does not cause any separation in the specimen. Crack width and its propagation velocity in rubberized concrete are lower than those of plain concrete. Ultrasonic analysis reveals large reductions in the ultrasonic modulus and high sound absorption for tire-rubber concrete.

Physical Model Method for Seismic Study of Concrete Dams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bogdan Roşca

2008-01-01

Full Text Available The study of the dynamic behaviour of concrete dams by means of the physical model method is very useful to understand the failure mechanism of these structures to action of the strong earthquakes. Physical model method consists in two main processes. Firstly, a study model must be designed by a physical modeling process using the dynamic modeling theory. The result is a equations system of dimensioning the physical model. After the construction and instrumentation of the scale physical model a structural analysis based on experimental means is performed. The experimental results are gathered and are available to be analysed. Depending on the aim of the research may be designed an elastic or a failure physical model. The requirements for the elastic model construction are easier to accomplish in contrast with those required for a failure model, but the obtained results provide narrow information. In order to study the behaviour of concrete dams to strong seismic action is required the employment of failure physical models able to simulate accurately the possible opening of joint, sliding between concrete blocks and the cracking of concrete. The design relations for both elastic and failure physical models are based on dimensional analysis and consist of similitude relations among the physical quantities involved in the phenomenon. The using of physical models of great or medium dimensions as well as its instrumentation creates great advantages, but this operation involves a large amount of financial, logistic and time resources.

Early-age behaviour of concrete in massive structures, experimentation and modelling

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zreiki, J.; Bouchelaghem, F.; Chaouche, M.

2010-01-01

This study is focused on the behaviour of concrete at early-age in massive structures, in relation with the prediction of both cracking risk and residual stresses, which is still a challenging task. In this paper, a 3D thermo-chemo-mechanical model has been developed, on the basis of complete material characterization experiments, in order to predict the early-age development of strains and residual stresses, and in order to assess the risk of cracking in massive concrete structures. The parameters of the proposed model were identified on two different concretes, High Performance Concrete and Fibrous Self-Compacted Concrete - from simple experiments in the laboratory: uniaxial tension and compression tests, dynamic Young's modulus measurements, free and autogenous shrinkages, semi-adiabatic calorimetry. The proposed model has been implemented in a Finite Element code, and the numerical simulations of the laboratory tests have proved the model consistency. Furthermore, early-age experiments conducted on massive structures have also been simulated, in order to investigate the predictive capability of the model, and to assess the model performance in practical situations where varying temperatures are involved.

EDF reactor building containment: Monitoring of the pre-stressed concrete structure