A Construction Solution for Major Earthquakes
A Construction Solution for Major Earthquakes - Vinyl Council Australia
| 28 March 2011 |
| Testing Mother Nature: A Construction System for Magnitude 9 Earthquakes. |
| An Australian innovative wall construction system has been confirmed by sophisticated tests and analysis to withstand major ground motions measuring as high as magnitude 9.0 on the Richter scale. Over the past 20 months, the Dincel permanent PVC formwork system for construction of concrete walls has been undergoing testing at the Structures Laboratory at the University of Technology Sydney by a team from accessUTS Pty Ltd. The resulting analysis, completed in February and published this week, found that the Dincel system is safe and practical and offers a reliable, seismic-resistant solution. Professor Bijan Samali, Professor of Structural Engineering, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering and a Specialist Consultant at accessUTS Pty Ltd, said he has no reservations in recommending the system to the global community on the basis of its proven performance under most hostile loading environments. The tests included subjecting specimen Dincel wall panels to motion equivalent to that recorded during the 1995 Kobe earthquake in Japan and the 1940 El Centro, earthquake in California, representing large magnitude near field and far field earthquakes respectively. Additional tests established and directly compared the resilience of the Dincel wall system with that of a conventional wall in sustaining large deformations, well in excess of what current building codes allow. The specimen sample made up of conventional concrete displayed a maximum top displacement of 70 mm (deformation level of 2.1%) before being declared as unsafe while a similar specimen made up of the Dincel system was able to demonstrate a maximum top displacement of 145 mm (deformation level of 4.4%) before being declared as unsafe. Such large displacements are likely to occur for earthquakes registering magnitude of 8.5 and above on the Richter scale. “A ratio of more than 2 to 1 in accommodating large displacement is a testimony to Dincel Walls’ superiority as an effective aseismic system” the report states. “Furthermore, the confinement offered by the polymer encapsulation is vital in maintaining stiffness and delaying its deterioration, hence resulting in much safer structures in terms of preservation of life and preventing collapse.” The report found that an obvious advantage of the Dincel Wall system was the provision of sound confinement to the concrete by the cellular PVC formwork which incorporates the outer skin as well as the integral internal webs. This prevents the deterioration of stiffness and possible collapse of the wall by not allowing the concrete to spall after several loading cycles, even if fully cracked. “This is a welcomed safety feature for walls subjected to strong ground motions” the report states. These tests proved to be “very conclusive” in demonstrating the capacity of the Dincel system to protect human life and withstand major damaging earthquakes of up to magnitude 9 on the Richter scale. Background Information Dincel Construction System (DCS) is an internationally patented permanent polymer formwork for walls and columns, which when filled with ready mixed concrete, produces an economical, strong and durable structure. The system has been created and developed in Australia by professional engineers. At the request of Dincel Construction Systems Pty Ltd, accessUTS were engaged to test and analyse the adequacy of Dincel-Wall for installation in seismic regions. accessUTS is a division of the University of Technology Sydney in Australia which provides specialist consultancy services to the Australian industry. The testing and analysis program was designed and completed over a period of 20 months. The testing program comprised of shake table and push over testings of full scale samples. Additional testing included flexural beam testings as well as out of plane deformation level testing on the shake table. |
| A copy of the full report and testing video is available at: http://www.dincelconstructionsystem.com/documents/Building%20Solution%20for%20Earthquake%20Prone%20Regions.pdf |
| The Vinyl Council of Australia is working to advance the sustainability of the vinyl, or PVC, industry in Australia. Its members are drawn from across the supply chain of the vinyl industry. |
| For more information contact Tracy Morden, Vinyl Council of Australia, directly on 03 9368 4857. |
| info@vinyl.org.au. |
