Osimen Iruansi - Research Student
Telephone: 25728
Room: E110A
email : o.iruansi@sheffield.ac.uk
Research Group
Research Project
The Implementation of Eurocode 2: Shear Performance and the Development of a web based training module
The imminent implementation of the structural Eurocode and subsequent withdrawal of the British standards requires all design professionals to be fully competent with the use of the Eurocode. At the same time, the structural safety levels associated with the use of the new expression and processes for predicting the shear resistance of structural components in Eurocode 2 are currently being debated.
The aims of this research are two-fold: first, to assess the accuracy of shear prediction models advocated by both BS8110 and EC2. Second, to use the knowledge gained from the in-depth analysis of EC2 to develop a web based training module, consisting of an extensive collection of randomly generated interactive exercises and worked examples to complement the existing CALcrete module for design of Reinforced Concrete to EC2.
To achieve the research aims, the following objectives have been identified:
- Establish a database of test results based on test specimens found in literature.
- Perform a probabilistic analysis of the modelling error associated with the Eurocode and British standard models for predicting shear capacity of reinforced concrete beams (i.e. statistical evaluation, correlation analysis and characterisation of modelling error).
- Adopt results from probabilistic analysis to asses the adequacy of the selected methods in evaluating shear strength.
- Develop a web based design training module to complement CALcrete.
It is expected that the developed web based training module could effectively be used for distance learning and training in institutions while assisting in overcoming the perceived difficulties with the Eurocode implementation process, thus ensuring that the UK construction industry is well equipped to exploit the opportunities offered by this pan European Standardisation. Finally, statistical characterisation of model uncertainty is valuable for reliability based design codes.