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FINITE ELEMENT MODELLING OF AXIAL COMPRESSION OF CONCRETE

FILLED PLASTIC TUBES

P. K GUPTA - 1a, V .K. VERMA -2a


a
Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Roorkee, Roorkee, India.

ABSTRACT— In coastal regions the deterioration of concrete and corrosion of steel


are the main causes of the failure of structures. Moreover, corroded reinforcement
loses its strength and turns ineffective. Therefore, concrete and reinforcement should
configure in such a way to avoid their contact with sea water. This can be done by
providing an outer safety layer of such a material which has resistance against sea
water and marine environment. Plastic tubes filled with concrete can be used as a
structural element against marine environment with required durability. In the
present study, a finite element model using ANSYS software has been developed to
study the behavior of concrete filled plastic tube (CFPT) as column. The results are
verified against the experimental data present in Wang and Yang (Wang and Yang,
2010) in which High density polyethylene pipes (HDPE) with nominal pressure of
0.6, 1.0 and 1.6 MPa of diameter 110mm and length 220mm were filled with
concrete and subjected to axial compression to investigate their stress-strain
behavior. Two empirical relationships on the basis of FEA are proposed, one
between confining pressure (fl) and D/t and second between material degradation
parameter (k3) and D/t. It is shown that confining pressure (fl) and material
degradation parameter (k3) increases as the outer diameter to thickness (D/t) ratio
decreases. The findings indicate that the HDPE tubes not only provide the protective
layer to the concrete but also increase the confinement, strength and ductility.

Keywords — CFPT, Confinement, Finite element analysis, ductility, axial


compression.

INTRODUCTION

Plastic have exceptional properties, which make these materials attractive for
different structural applications. Some of these properties include high resistance to
severe environmental attacks, electromagnetic transparency and high strength to
weight ratio. Due to these properties, there is a great demand for structures such as
piling, overhead sign structures, light poles and bridge piers to be made up of
materials that are more durable in comparison to traditional materials and systems.
There are two types of plastics; thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers.
Thermoplastic polymers like HDPE/Poly Vinyl Chloride (PVC) are polymers used
in the construction industries. This provides some main attributes that make it useful
in the construction of certain structures exposed to corrosive environments.
HDPE/PVC tubes are characterized by having light weight, which permits easy
handling. They are impermeable to gases and fluids. Their service life goes beyond
fifty years. Very few authors have studied the behavior of concrete filled plastic
tubular columns.
(Kurt, 1978) conducted a theoretical analysis to study the interaction between the
concrete core and plastic tube. This analysis indicates that the effective pressure on
the boundary between concrete core and pipe is proportional to the Poisson’s ratio
of concrete and inversely proportional to the ratio of the modulus of elasticity of
concrete and plastic. He also conducted experiments to see the increase and decrease
in strength of concrete core due to confinement and slenderness ratio respectively.
(Marzouck et al., 2002) conducted experimental study on concrete filled PVC tubes
with 100mm diameter concrete core and 3mm thickness of tube. The lengths of tubes
were 758, 562, 416 and 270mm. They concluded that the PVC tube provides
considerable lateral confinement to the concrete columns. They reported that as the
slenderness ratio increases, the compressive strength of concrete filled PVC tube
decreases. They found that tube exhibits large lateral deformation before failure.
(Wang and Yang, 2010) presented the experimental study on plastic pipe confined
concrete (PPC). The plastic pipes were taken as HDPE pipes. They reported that the
thickness and unconfined compressive strength of concrete affect the post-peak
behavior of stress-strain curve and the ultimate strength of PPC. They also reported
that the ductility ratio of PPC increases from 1.17 to 4.27 times that of common
concrete (CC) and energy absorption of PPC increases from 10.7 to 26 times that of
CC. (Gupta et al., 2012) tested twelve specimens of unplasticised poly vinyl chloride
(UPVC) tubes filled with steel fibre concrete. They showed the effect of diameter to
thickness ratio and length to diameter ratio on the strength, confinement and
ductility. They also concluded that the maximum displacement till complete failure
of concrete core was around 4.5mm while concrete filled UPVC tubes were not
completely failed till 11mm of compression.
(Hsuan et al., 2003) carried out a nonlinear finite element analysis (FEA) of concrete
filled steel tubular (CFT) columns with circular section, square section and square
section stiffened by reinforcing ties to study and analyze their behavior. They
reported that for circular tubes having smaller values of D/t (say D/t < 40) provides
a greater confinement. They proposed an empirical relationship on the basis of FEA
between confining pressure and D/t values for the two ranges of D/t values. The two
ranges of D/t values were 21.7 to 47 and 47 to 150. On the basis of these equations,
it is clear that as D/t increases, the confining pressure decreases.
From the literature review it can be concluded that few researchers have studied the
behavior of concrete filled plastic tubes. Study the behavior of CFPT with the help
of computer modeling is still untouched. In this paper a systematic computational
study using FEA has been conducted. With the help of this study it has been shown
that the value of fl depends on D/t ratio and concrete compressive strength while post
peak variation of load-compression curve depends on D/t ratio of HDPE tube.

COMPUTER MODELING

Finite Element Model

A three dimensional Finite element model was developed using ANSYS software to
simulate the concrete filled HDPE tube (CFHT) under axial compression. To model
the concrete core, a three dimensional eight node solid element SOLID 65 was used.
To model the HDPE tube, eight node solid element SOLID 45 was used. Mesh size
was chosen from 6mm to 10mm for both HDPE tube and concrete core. Two rigid
plates were modeled to simulate rigid cross heads of machine. Load was applied to
the column through the top loading plate. In the compression test, direct contact
exists between the end plates and end surface of the column; therefore a contact
available in ANSYS was used to simulate the interaction between rigid plate and
column end surface. The contact was defined as a surface to surface contact.
To activate the confinement of concrete core in finite element model, a contact
surface pair comprised of the inner surface of the HDPE tube and the outer surface
of concrete core was adopted. Flexible behavior in the normal direction was assumed
with no penetration allowed between the surfaces. A friction factor of 0.2 was
obtained and then adopted to achieve a quick convergence and to obtain accurate
results. In finite element model, the lower rigid plate contacting the bottom of
column was fixed in all six directions by reference node. The upper rigid plate at the
top of the column was modeled fixed in five directions and only allowed movement
in column axis at reference node. The load was applied as static uniform
displacement at upper rigid plate through the reference node at the center of rigid
plate. Fig. 1 shows a typical finite element model adopted for modeling of CFHT
column.
Fig. 1:Typical Finite Element Model for CFHT Column

Material Model of HDPE Tube

The material behavior of the HDPE tube is similar to PVC-U pipe and it can be
simulated by an elastic-perfectly plastic model (Yaun and Yang, 2013). The
Poisson’s ratio and elastic modulus of HDPE are taken 0.35 and 1000MPa. When
HDPE tube subjected to several stresses, a Von mises criterion F is used to define
the elastic limit, which is written as
1
F  3J 2  ( 1   2) 2  ( 2   3) 2  ( 3   1) 2  y (1)
2

Where J2 = Second stress invariant of the stress deviator tensor.


σ1, σ2, & σ3 are the principal stresses.
Fig. 2 shows the stress-strain variation for HDPE tube.
Fig. 2: Stress-strain relationship for HDPE tube

Material Model of Concrete

The response of concrete is modeled by an elastic-plastic theory with associated flow


and Isometric hardening rule. The concrete in CFHT column is usually subjected to
tri-axial compression stresses, the failure of concrete is dominated by compression
failure. The Poisson’s ratio of concrete material is taken as 0.2
Stress-Strain model for concrete confined by HDPE tube
Fig.3 shows the uniaxial stress-strain curve for unconfined and confined concrete.
The maximum stress of concrete fcc confined by HDPE tube and corresponding strain
εcc have been proposed by (Mander et al.,1988).The equations are given as

fcc  fck  k 1 fl (2)


fl
cc  ck (1  k 2 ) (3)
fck

Where fck = Unconfined compressive cylinder strength of concrete;


k1, k2 are constant, generally taken as 4.1 and 20.5, (Richart et al.1928).
The value of εck for confined concrete may be taken as 0.003 as per (ACI 1999)
fl = Lateral confining stress induced due to confinement provided by HDPE tube and
depends upon D/t & fu value of tube.
The first part of stress-strain curve shown in Fig. 3 defines the linear property of
confined concrete and the proportional limit stress can be assumed to be 0.5fcc (Hu-
et al.2009). The initial Young’s Modulus of the confined concrete as per ACI- 1999
is given by Ecc  4700 fcc MPa. The Poisson’s ratio may be taken as 0.2.
The second part of the stress-strain curve is the nonlinear portion, starts from the
proportional limit stress 0.5fcc, ends at the confined strength fcc. This part was
proposed by (Saenz, 1964), and is given as

Ecc
f  (4)
     
2 3

1  ( R  RE  2)    (2 R  1)   R 
 cc   cc   cc 

Where

Ecccc RE ( R  1) 1
RE  R 
fcc , ( R  1) 2 R (5)

the values of Rσ & Rε= 4 (Hsuan et al., 2003)


The third part of the curve starts from fcc and ends at fu  k 3 fcc with the
corresponding strain u  11cc (Hu et al.2009). The reduction factor k3 depends
upon (D/t) values of tube. Values of fl and k3 are determined by matching the
numerical results with experimental results.

Fig. 3: Stress-strain curves for unconfined concrete and concrete confined by


plastic tube
SIMULATION RESULTS OF CONCRETE FILLED HDPE TUBE

Table 1 shows the geometrical and material properties of concrete filled HDPE tubes
(CFHT) specimens. The geometrical material properties were taken from the
literature (Wang and Yang 2010). The outer diameter and length of pipes are
constant and equals to 110mm and 220 mm respectively. The thickness of HDPE
pipes varies from 4.61mm to 10.3mm. The HDPE pipes which were used for the
specimens fall under the category of nominal pressure of 0.6 MPa, 1.0 MPa and 1.6
MPa. Three grades of concrete i.e. C30, C45 and C60 have been used in the study.
The variables which affect the confining pressure (fl) are the grade of concrete,
ultimate tensile strength of tube material (fu) and diameter to thickness ratio while
the value of D/t affects the material degradation parameter (k3). The results of
numerical simulations for CFHT specimens are given in Table 2. From finite element
analysis, Strength of concrete filled HDPE tubes varies from 24.05MPa to 44.58
MPa. The Stress-strain curves are plotted against the experimental data (Wang and
Yang 2010) in Fig. 4. The numerical results and mode of deformation (Fig. 4) are
fairly in good agreement with experimental values. It was observed that the value of
fl and k3 decrease with the increasing of diameter to thickness ratio. As a result the
value of fl varies from 1.18 to 3.0 for CFHT when HDPE pipes with nominal pressure
0.6 MPa to 1.6 MPa when C30 grade concrete was used for specimens. On the other
hand it varies from 0.6 to 1.5 MPa when higher grade of concrete C45 and C60 were
used. The values of confining pressure for higher grade of concrete say C45 & C60
are half of the values for normal grade of concrete C30. The higher grade of concrete
loses its strength before getting full confinement. In the present case the degradation
parameter (k3) varies from 0.3 to 0.4 and depends on the value of D/t. From equation
6 and 7, it can be seen that the confining pressure depends on the ultimate strength
of HDPE tube, compressive strength of concrete and the value of D/t.
Figs 5(a) & 5(b) show the curves between fl/fu versus D/t and k3 versus D/t
respectively. From the results of numerical simulations, two empirical relations may
be proposed for getting the values of fl and k3. These equations can be used for the
value of D/t from 10 to 25. These are as follows:
2
fl D D
 0.0004    0.0194    0.2758 10  D  25 for C30 concrete
fu t  t  t
(6)
2
D D
 0.0002    0.0098    0.1388 10  D  25 for C45 & C60 concrete (7)
fl
fu t  t  t
For the parameter k3, another empirical relation may be proposed as follows

2
D D
k 3  0.0005  t   0.0234  t   0.5976 10  D t  25
(8)

Table 1: Geometrical and material properties of CFHT specimens

Specimen Dimensions (mm) Ratios Material Tested


Properties by
(MPa)
Outer Thickness Length D/t L/D fc fu
diameter (t)
(D)
PE0.6-C30 110 4.61 220 23.86 2.0 23.38 26.0 Wang
PE1.0-C30 110 7.35 220 14.97 2.0 23.38 26.0 and
PE1.6-C30 110 10.3 220 10.68 2.0 23.38 26.0 Yang
PE0.6-C45 110 4.61 220 23.86 2.0 38.86 26.0 (2010)
PE1.0-C45 110 7.35 220 14.97 2.0 38.86 26.0
PE1.6-C45 110 10.3 220 10.68 2.0 38.86 26.0
PE0.6-C60 110 4.61 220 23.86 2.0 50.18 26.0
PE1.0-C60 110 7.35 220 14.97 2.0 50.18 26.0
PE1.6-C60 110 10.3 220 10.68 2.0 50.18 26.0

Table 2: Results of numerical simulation

Specimen Ultimate Strength % Error fl fl/fu k3


(MPa)
Experiment Analysis
PE0.6-C30 23.009 24.05 4.52 1.18 0.0454 0.30
PE1.0-C30 24.976 26.02 4.18 2.0 0.077 0.35
PE1.6-C30 27.088 28.22 4.18 3.0 0.1154 0.40
PE0.6-C45 28.775 30.07 4.50 0.6 0.0231 0.30
PE1.0-C45 30.002 30.90 2.99 1.0 0.0385 0.35
PE1.6-C45 29.536 30.57 3.50 1.5 0.0577 0.40
PE0.6-C60 42.900 44.58 3.92 0.6 0.0231 0.30
PE1.0-C60 39.004 39.66 1.68 1.0 0.0385 0.35
PE1.6-C60 36.551 37.46 2.49 1.5 0.0577 0.40
Experimental ANSYS model

(j)

Fig. 4: Stress-strain curves and deformed shape


Fig. 5: fl /fu and k3 versus D/t

CONCLUSIONS

Following points can be concluded on the basis of results obtained from Finite
element analysis of concrete filled HDPE tube.
1. The confinement contribution increases with decrease of D/t value. The
confining pressure is half for higher grade of concrete compared to normal
grade of concrete. In the present case the confining pressure varies from 0.6
MPa to 3.0 MPa.
2. The material degradation parameter, k3 increases with decreasing of D/t
value.
3. The enhancement in concrete strength is not much more in concrete filled
HDPE pipe, but it provides the protective layer to concrete against the
chemical attack. It also improves the ductility of concrete
4. Two empirical relations have been proposed to calculate the value of fl and
k3.
5. A better ductility can be achieved with the use of HDPE pipes for concrete
filled tubes.
REFERENCES

1. ACI-318 , Building code requirements for structural concrete and commentary,


Detroit (USA). American Concrete Institute, 1999.
2. Gupta, P.K., Verma, V.K., Nabam, A. and Ahuja, A.K., A study on the
behaviour of axially loaded Unplasticised Poly Vinyl Chloride (UPVC) concrete
filled tubes, Proc. fourth international conference on structural stability and
dynamics at Jaipur, India,2012.
3. Hu, H.T., Huang, C. S., Wu, M.H. and Wu, Y. M., Nonlinear analysis of axially
loaded concrete filled tube columns with confinement effect,10. Str. Engg., 129,
1322-1231,2009
4. Hu, H.T., Huang, C.S., Wu, M.H. and Wu, Y.M., Nonlinear analysis of axially
loaded concrete-filled tube columns with confinement effect,10. Str. Engg.,129,
1322-1329,2003.
5. Kurt, C.E., Concrete filled structural plastic columns. Str. Division,104, 55-
63,1978.
6. Mander, J. B., Priestley, M. J. and Park, R., Theoretical stress-strain model for
confined concrete,8. Str. Engg., 114,1804-1830,1988.
7. Marzouck M. and Sennah K., Concrete filled PVC tubes as compression
members, Proc. International congress on challenges of concrete construction at
Scotland, U.K, 2002.
8. Richart F.E., Brandzaeg A., Brown R. L., A study of the failure of concrete under
combined compressive stresses. Bull 185. Champaign (IL, USA); University of
Illinios Engineering Experimental station,1928.
9. Saenz L.P., Equation for the stress-strain curve of concrete,9. ACI journal,61,
1229-1235,1964.
10. Wang, J. and Yang, Q., Experimental study on mechanical properties of concrete
confined with plastic pipes,2. ACI materials journal,107,132-137,2010.
11. Yuan, W.B. and Yang, J.J., Studies of short concrete filled double skin
composite tube columns under axially compressive loads, Construction Steel
Research 80, 23-31,2013.

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