Behaviour of headed shear studs in lightweight aggregate concrete under elevated temperatures

Speaker: Ee Loon Tan

Affiliation: University of Western Sydney

Time: Monday 01/09/2014 from 14:00 to 15:00

Venue: Access Grid UWS. Presented from Penrith (Y239), accessible from Parramatta (EB.1.32) and Campbelltown (26.1.50).

Abstract: Composite steel-concrete structures are formed when a concrete component is connected to a steel component by means of a shear connector. The primary advantage of a steel-concrete composite structure is that the composite action takes advantage of the high tensile strength of the steel and the complimentary high compressive strength of the concrete. Lightweight aggregate concrete (LWAC) consists of lightweight aggregates has an oven-dry density less than 2000kg/m3. Lightweight aggregate concrete has lower density and specific gravity than normal weight concrete (NWC) due to its porous aggregates. Several studies have verified that lightweight aggregate concrete performs superior to normal weight concrete at elevated temperatures. However, lightweight aggregates can be more expensive than normal weight aggregates. Nevertheless, the use of lightweight aggregate concrete is still feasible due to the reduced weight of the lightweight aggregate members which resulted in reductions in supporting members, foundations, formwork, transportation, labour and time. Considering the superior thermal properties of lightweight aggregate concrete and its reduced density, there is a need to determine how the shear connection of a lightweight aggregate concrete composite structure performs under elevated temperatures.

Biography: Dr Ee Loon Tan joined the School of Engineering at University of Western Sydney as a Lecturer in February 2011 after he received his PhD degree from University of Western Sydney in 2010. His PhD was titled: "The effects of partial shear connection on composite steel-concrete beams subjected to combined flexure and torsion." Previously, he graduated from University of New South Wales with both a Bachelor degree in Civil Engineering and a Master degree in Structural Engineering from 1999 to 2004. During his studies, he has worked for CPG Corporation Pte Ltd (Singapore) as an Engineering Trainee in the Civil and Structural Engineering Division from 2001 to 2002. Furthermore, he held a position as a Research Assistant to assist in an Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Project from 2009 to 2011 in University of Western Sydney under the supervision of Professor Brian Uy.