See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.

net/publication/329627939

Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-

concrete composite structures

Article in Frontiers of Structural and Civil Engineering · December 2018

DOI: 10.1007/s11709-019-0514-x

CITATIONS READS

70 19,029

5 authors, including:

Wang Jiaji Shuangke Gou

The University of Hong Kong Tsinghua University
65 PUBLICATIONS 601 CITATIONS 6 PUBLICATIONS 194 CITATIONS

SEE PROFILE SEE PROFILE

All content following this page was uploaded by Wang Jiaji on 08 February 2019.

The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file.

Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14
https://doi.org/10.1007/s11709-019-0514-x

REVIEW

Technological development and engineering applications

of novel steel-concrete composite structures
Jianguo NIEa* , Jiaji WANGb,c, Shuangke GOUb, Yaoyu ZHUb, Jiansheng FANb
a
Beijing Engineering Research Center of Steel and Concrete Composite Structures, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
b
Key Laboratory of Civil Engineering Safety and Durability of China Education Ministry, Department of Civil Engineering, Tsinghua
University, Beijing 100084, China
c
State Key Laboratory for Track Technology of High-Speed Railway, Beijing 100891, China
*
Corresponding author. E-mail: [email protected]

© Higher Education Press and Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature 2019
ABSTRACT In view of China’s development trend of green building and building industrialization, based on the
emerging requirements of the structural engineering community, the development and proposition of novel resource-
saving high-performance steel-concrete composite structural systems with adequate safety and durability has become a
kernel development trend in structural engineering. This paper provides a state of the art review of China’s cutting-edge
research and technologies in steel-concrete composite structures in recent years, including the building engineering, the
bridge engineering and the special engineering. This paper summarizes the technical principles and applications of the
long-span bi-directional composite structures, the long-span composite transfer structures, the comprehensive crack
control technique based on uplift-restricted and slip-permitted (URSP) connectors, the steel plate concrete composite
(SPCC) strengthen technique, and the innovative composite joints. By improving and revising traditional structure types,
the comprehensive superiority of steel-concrete composite structures is well elicited. The research results also indicate
that the high-performance steel-concrete composite structures have a promising popularizing prospect in the future.

KEYWORDS high-performance composite structure, bi-directional composite, composite transfer, uplift-restricted and slip-
permitted connectors, steel plate concrete composite strengthen

1 Introduction Compared with reinforced concrete (RC) structures and

steel structures, the composite structures have currently
The composite structures were invented in the early become another heated research topic in China. The history
twentieth century and were first investigated and adopted of the composite construction in China is summarized
by developed industrial countries. The systematic research briefly as follows:
and application of composite construction in China, In terms of the composite components, a series of
however, initiated from the 1980s. Based on the design, composite beams were developed first, including the
analysis, and construction of many large-scale complex composite beam with laminated slab, the composite
composite structures and ultra-high-rise composite struc- beam with prefabricated slab, the channel-shaped compo-
tures, China has accumulated many innovative technology site beam, the composite beam with slab opening, and the
achievements with independent intellectual properties composite truss. Many design issues were also investigated
recently. Many technology difficulties in material science, systematically, including the interface slip effect, the
design methods, construction, and maintenance have been design method for shear strength, the longitudinal shear
solved, which powerfully guaranteed the successful design method, and the behavior under bending-shear-
construction of China’s major landmark projects [1]. torsion loads. The analysis theory and design methods of
composite beams were systematically developed and
Article history: Received Aug 6, 2018; Accepted Oct 18, 2018 widely adopted in both floor framing systems and overline
2 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

urban bridges. Second, the concrete filled steel tube the innovative composite joints. For each technology, the
(CFST) members had significant advantage in perfor- layout, the construction procedure, technical advantages,
mance. Combined with many construction technologies, and related experimental or numerical results are illu-
the CFST members have gained widespread achievements strated.
in the construction of many ultra-high-rise buildings and
bridges in China. Apart from that, the steel plate-concrete
composite (SPCC) member is also an innovative compo- 2 Long-span bi-directional composite floors
site member developed recently, and has been popularly
adopted in many engineering communities, including the The modern building structures are required to be light-
irregular structures, the urban railway bridges, the weight, long-span, and heavy-load. Widely adopted in
strengthening of existing RC structures, and high-rise floor design, the traditional RC floor is not suitable long-
industrial buildings. Because of its significantly improved span heavy-load structures because of its unacceptable
performance, the SPCC member will play a significant role self-weight, poor seismic resistance, and cracking problem
in the kernel strategic infrastructure constructions of [2]. As shown in Fig. 1, three types of long-span bi-
China, such as the large granary and bunker, and the directional composite structures were proposed for
safety shells of nuclear power plants. improved crack resistance and seismic behavior, including
In terms of the composite structural systems, the the two-way composite floor, the composite floor with
‘connecting’ and ‘cracking’ are the key technical problems hybrid one-way and two-way steel grillage, and the
circumventing the development of composite construction. irregular skew composite floor.
In response to the ‘connecting’ problem, a series of high- The two-way composite floor is as shown in Fig. 1(a).
performance novel composite joints and hybrid joints have The floor is composed of side beams, steel grillage, precast
been developed, which directly promoted the construction slabs, and cast-in situ concrete, which were connected
of the first composite space-launching tower in China. In together with shear studs. The construction procedure of
response to the ‘cracking’ problem, a systematic crack the floor is as follows. First, fabricate steel beams, weld
control technique based on uplift-restricted and slip- shear connectors in factory, and install the frame columns,
permitted (URSP) connector was proposed, which sig- side beams, and steel grillage on site. Second, install the
nificantly promoted the development of the continuous precast slabs above the steel beams and apply temporary
beam composite bridges, the rigid-frame composite support for the slabs. Finally, apply rebar above the precast
bridges, and the long-span composite bridge deck systems. slabs and pour the concrete. Compared with the traditional
By the end of 2018, totally 258 ultra-high-rise buildings RC floor, the two-way composite floor saves the form-
exceeding 250 m in height will be built in China, with works and shortens the construction period. Compared
98.4% of them adopting composite structural system or with the traditional one-way composite floor, the structural
hybrid structural system. In bridge construction, aside from height is reduced, and the capacity and rigidity is
the traditional composite plate girder and box-girder improved. The two-way composite floor has been
bridges, many novel composite bridge systems have successfully applied to many long-span infrastructures
gained significant development and acknowledgment, with significant technical and economic benefits, including
including the composite girder bridges with corrugated the Wuchang Railway Station, the Shenzhen Wanxuan
steel webs, the channel-shaped composite girder bridges, Complex Building, the Qingdao Laigang Building, and the
and the rigid-frame composite bridges. Apart from that, Shenzhen Huarun Center.
many important technological achievements in long-span The flexural behavior of the two-way composite floor
bridge deck systems, such as the steel-ultra high has been investigated by means of experimental and
performance concrete composite bridge deck systems, numerical study. The large-scale static loading tests of
provide new methodologies to overcome the weakness of composite floors were reported [3] and the deformation
traditional pre-stressed bridge deck systems or orthotropic and load distribution characteristics of specimens were
bridge deck systems. These innovations have directly led obtained. As shown in Fig. 2, the failure mode of the
to the construction of many long-span composite bridges, specimen was the formation of plastic hinge in the steel
such as the first composite arch bridge with composite arch beam and yield line in the RC floor, the test results showed
and composite girder (the Shenzhen North Station Bridge) that the bi-directional steel-concrete composite floor had
and the first suspension bridge with composite bridge deck good ductility and capacity. The flexural stiffness was 2.5
system (the Yingwuzhou Yangtze River Bridge). times that of the steel grillage. Based on the test results, the
This paper is focused on presenting a state-of-the-art beam-shell hybrid elastoplastic finite element (FE) model
review of five types of steel-concrete composite structures, was developed to predict the performance of the bi-
including (i) the long-span bi-directional composite floors, directional composite floor under concentrated load [4]. In
(ii) the long-span composite transfer structures, (iii) the addition, based on the FE analysis, the simplified design
comprehensive crack control techniques based on URSP method of the bi-directional composite floor was devel-
connectors, (iv) the SPCC strengthen technique, and (v) oped. The design formulas of the effective flange width of
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 3

Fig. 1 Three types of long-span bi-directional composite structures. (a) Two-way composite floor; (b) composite floor with hybrid one-
way and two-way steel grillage; (c) irregular skew composite floor

Fig. 2 Failure modes of long-span bi-directional steel-concrete composite floor [3]. (a) First crack observed; (b) slab crushing and yield
line formed; (c) plastic hinges of composite section; (d) damage in top surface; (e) damage in bottom surface
4 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

the bi-directional composite floor based on the equivalent positive moment rebar and to control concrete cracking.
strength and the equivalent stiffness were proposed The steel weight of irregular skew composite floor in this
respectively. Eldib et al. [5] developed nonlinear FE project was only 127.9 kg/m2, which was reduced by 23%
model to simulate the static behavior two-way composite compared with the steel box girder scheme. The self-
floor and one-way composite floor with cold steel straps weight of the floor system was reduced by 64% compared
and showed that the steel straps and studs considerably with the pre-stressed concrete floor scheme. In summary,
decreased the slab deflection. Risna and Anima [6] the long-span bi-directional composite structure improves
developed nonlinear FE models to investigate the effect the utilization efficiency of steel and concrete, and has the
of beam spacing and slab opening size on the flexural advantages of improved construction feasibility, capacity
capacity of the two-way composite floor. and rigidity, with a broad application potential in the long-
To extend the applicability of the composite floor, the span floor systems.
composite floor with hybrid one-way and two-way steel
grillage is developed as shown in Fig. 1(b). The floor is
composed of side beams, steel grillage, secondary beams, 3 Long-span composite transfer structures
and cast-in situ concrete slab. The construction procedure
of the floor is as follows. First, fabricate steel beams with As shown in Fig. 3(a), with the increasing requirement for
welded stud connectors in factory and install the frame large openings at the ground floor, it is often necessary to
columns, side beams, and steel grillage on site. Second, provide a horizontal transfer structure, namely a transfer
install the secondary beams and formwork on site. Finally, structure [8], on the floor where the structure is converted.
apply rebar and pour the concrete slab. In this floor system, The traditional transfer structure mainly used RC transfer
the secondary beams support the concrete formwork beams or steel reinforced concrete (SRC) transfer beams,
during construction and reduce the temporary support. as shown in Figs. 3(b) and 3(c). These traditional transfer
The floor system also reduces amount of beam-column beams had high structural height, induced significant
joints, which is beneficial for reducing the construction seismic response, and had limited spanning capacity. The
cost. Compared with the traditional two-way composite RC and SRC transfer beams also had difficulties in
floors, the composite floor with hybrid one-way and two- construction and crack prevention. The beam-column joint
way steel grillage considerably reduces the span of each between traditional transfer beams and columns is
concrete slab. Therefore, the developed floor system is vulnerable to brittle shear failure under seismic load. In
more suitable for long-span floors. response to the aforementioned problems, the authors
In addition, with the rapid development of modern developed a new steel-concrete composite transfer struc-
architectures, the rapid development of irregular floors has ture as shown in Fig. 3(d), which consists of CFST
induced complicated stress field and cracking problems in columns and steel-concrete composite transfer beams. The
the concrete slab. An irregular skew composite floor is composite transfer structure has significantly reduced
further developed as shown in Fig. 1(c). The floor system is structural height and self-weight and enhanced spanning
composed of side beams, skew steel beams, steel plates, capacity. The proposed composite transfer structure is also
and cast-in situ concrete slabs. The construction procedure convenient in construction.
of the proposed floor system is as follows. First, fabricate In high-rise buildings, traditional composite transfer
steel beams with welded shear studs in the factory and beams are generally subject to heavy vertical load with thin
install the frame columns, side beams, and steel grillage on slabs, which could cause local buckling of bottom flanges
site. Second, install the steel plate at the bottom of the steel at the support section. The authors proposed an innovative
grillage to serve as permanent formwork. Finally, install composite beam section as shown in Fig. 3(d), which could
the rebar and pour the concrete above the steel plate. The effectively prevent the local buckling failure of the bottom
pentagon-shaped floor of the Binzhou Convention and flange. The bottom concrete was removed at mid-span to
Exhibition Center adopts the proposed irregular skew further reduce its self-weight. The proposed composite
composite floors [7], with a main span of 40.8 m and a transfer beam is particularly suitable for the side beam or
column-free floor area of 2019 m2. If the pre-stressed RC thin floor. Recently, the proposed composite transfer
beams were used, the beam height would be 3.0 m. If the structure has been applied to many long-span heavy-load
box steel beams were used, the beam height would be structures, such as the Guangzhou Yufeng Project and
2.5 m. If the open web steel joist were used, the joist height Guangzhou Dongpu Fupeng Hotel Project. Compared with
would be 4.0 m. These design results had unacceptable the traditional RC transfer structure, the long-span
floor height or self-weight. Finally, by using the proposed composite transfer structural system can reduce the self-
irregular skew composite floor, the floor height was weight of the transfer floor by 60%, thereby significantly
reduced to 2.0 m (including the floor thickness of reducing the structural height and improving the seismic
250 mm). In view of the complex shape of the floor and resistance.
the sophisticated principal stress direction, the steel plate of To investigate the mechanical behavior of the composite
8 mm in thickness was used in to replace traditional transfer structures, the large scale test was conducted with
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 5

Fig. 3 Different schemes of transfer beams in practical engineering projects [8]. (a) Transfer beam in high-rise building; (b) traditional
RC transfer beam; (c) RC/SRC transfer frame structure; (d) steel-concrete composite transfer frame structure

the vertical load and low-cycle reciprocating horizontal method and story drift ratio limit of the composite transfer
load [8–10]. The test results showed that the composite beam were proposed [9]. In addition, seismic design
transfer beam was intact throughout the loading history recommendations were proposed based on test results,
and the plastic hinge was not observed in the composite including limiting the composite transfer beam stiffness
transfer beam. To effectively simulate the long-span and the beam height, and recommendations for enhanced
composite transfer structural system, a multi-scale FE design of the beam-column joints. In conclusion, with the
simulation method based on fiber beam-column elements development of the high-performance structures in the
and multi-layer shell elements was developed [8]. Figure 4 future, the long-span composite transfer structure has
shows the comparison of the load-displacement curves broad application prospects.
between the test and the FE simulation. As shown in Fig. 4,
the developed FE model predicted the overall mechanical
properties of both the whole frame and each floor with 4 URSP connectors for crack control
reasonable accuracy. Therefore, an efficient tool for
accurate analysis of the seismic performance of the Shear connectors are used to connect the concrete and steel
composite transfer structure is established. Based on the in composite structures. For certain structural systems, the
experimental and numerical studies, the flexural design stability and capacity of composite structures is signifi-
6 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

Fig. 4 Load-displacement hysteretic curves [8]. (a) General behavior; (b) behavior of transfer story; (c) behavior of second story

Fig. 5 Cracking in steel-concrete composite structures. (a) Continuous composite beam bridge; (b) composite rigid frame bridge;
(c) composite deck system of cable-stayed bridge; (d) composite deck system of suspension bridge

cantly improved by applying full composite action. As mance still exist. In response to these problems, the authors
shown in Fig. 5, most large-scale engineering structures are proposed the URSP connector as shown in Fig. 6. Based
statically indeterminate and the hogging moment and stress on special detailed design, the sliding capability of the
concentration widely exist in complex structures. The full connector is enabled to a certain extent, which partially
composite action in these zones may induce compressive released the constraint of the concrete slab in the hogging
stress in steel plate and tensile stress in concrete. In moment region. It is beneficial for the redistribution of the
addition, the composite action also induces shrinkage local tensile stress and the pre-stress introduction effi-
cracking and reduces the performance and durability of ciency. Meanwhile, the URSP connector resists the vertical
composite structures. Therefore, the concrete crack control separation between steel and concrete.
has become an important problem in composite structures. To achieve the aforementioned properties, three kinds of
Presently, commonly used crack control methods include URSP connectors, namely the URSP-sliding connector
pre-stressing method, encrypted longitudinal reinforce- [12], the URSP-T connector [13], and the URSP-screw
ment method, and construction procedure method [11]. connector [14], were proposed. The URSP-sliding con-
Although these methods alleviate the cracking problem of nector is as shown in Fig. 6(b). An elliptical hole is bored at
the composite structures, the problems of complicated the top flange of the steel beam to control the slip
details, construction difficulty, and poor long-term perfor- capability. During construction, the stud is placed on the
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 7

Fig. 6 Traditional stud connector and three kinds of URSP connector. (a) Traditional stud connector; (b) URSP-sliding connector;
(c) URSP-T connector; (d) URSP-screw connector

elliptical hole by the positioning plate. Then the concrete traditional stud connectors [16]. The observed crack width
slab is cast and the nut is fixed at the top of the stud. The is as shown in Fig. 7. Test results showed that CTGB-2 had
URSP-T connector is as shown in Fig. 6(c). The connector similar stiffness and flexural capacity as those CTGB-1.
consists of a conventional T-shaped connector and a low Compared with CTGB-1, the CTGB-2 had a significantly
elastic modulus material. T-shaped connectors are welded higher cracking load and the crack width under the same
on the steel beam in the factory. Subsequently, the low load was also reduced 50%. In addition, the large scale
elastic modulus material is pasted on the web and top experimental study on three continuous composite beams
flange of the T-connector to release the shear constraint. was carried out [17,18]. The test results showed that the
Based on the aforementioned connectors, the URSP-screw URSP connector significantly reduced the crack width
connector was further developed. As shown in Fig. 6(d), without affecting the ultimate loading capacity and
the connector consists of nuts, screws, and low elastic bending stiffness. As for the mechanical behavior of the
modulus materials. The screw is first welded on the top URSP-T connector, the shear hysteresis test and pull-out
flange of the steel beam. Then the prefabricated cylindrical test were carried out [19–22]. The loading device and the
low elastic modulus material is installed on the screw. failure mode are as shown in Figs. 7(b) and 7(c). Two
Finally the nut is fixed on the top of the screw. If large failure modes of the URSP connector was observed in the
interface slip is required, an additional cylindrical low pull-out test, namely the yielding of connector web and the
elastic modulus material can be put on the nut. Compared punching shear failure of concrete. Through proper design
with the previous two types of connectors, the URSP- and details, sufficient pull-out capacity of the URSP
screw connectors are simple in construction, convenient in connector can be guaranteed. Based on the shear hysteresis
installation, reliable in performance, and controllable in test, the constitutive model and design method for the
slippage, which is beneficial for engineering design. URSP connector were proposed as shown in Figs. 7(d)–
To verify the crack resistance of the URSP connector in 7(f). The shear force-displacement hysteresis curve of the
the hogging moment region, a series of experimental study connector showed significant pinching effect and ductility.
on composite beams was carried out [15,16]. First, two The test results showed that the shear sliding displacement
steel truss-concrete composite beams were tested under of the URSP connector was 1/3ts, where ts denotes the
hogging moment at the scale ratio of 1/5. The CTGB-1 thickness of low-modulus material. Therefore, the design
used URSP connectors while the CTGB-2 specimen used recommendation for choosing ts is proposed as follows:
8 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

Fig. 7 Experimental study on shear and pull-out load of URSP connector [19]. (a) Crack width in negative moment test; (b) shear
hysteretic test; (c) pull-out test; (d) skeleton curve; (e) reloading curve; (f) unloading curve

(i) conduct FE analysis with nonlinear interface element to increasing requirement of service load and need strength-
calculate the required slip between the steel and concrete ening or retrofitting. In response to the significant
under service load; (ii) Set ts to be more than three times of requirement of strengthening existing RC structures,
the required slip. The ts ranged from 25 mm to 30 mm in many techniques had emerged, including the enlarged
some bridge projects. section method, the externally prestressing method, the
The URSP connectors have been widely adopted in externally bonded steel plate or fiber reinforced polymer
many projects, achieving significant social and economic (FRP) method, and the near surface mounted (NSM) FRP
benefits. As shown in Fig. 8, the steel consumption was method [23]. As reported in the literatures [24,25], in the
significantly reduced in the Tianjin Haihe River Jizhao traditional externally bonded steel plate or FRP method,
Bridge through application of the URSP connector and the interface between the old and new material has to be
optimization of the construction process. The maximum designed with sufficient tension strength and shear
tensile stress in concrete was also effectively controlled. strength. If the interface between the old and new material
On-site test showed sufficient crack resistance which met is designed improperly, the interface peeling failure is the
the design requirements. The National Highway 107 dominant failure mode, and the ultimate capacity of the
Shenzhen Xingwei-Huangtian U-turn Bridge is a contin- strengthened system can be even lower than the capacity of
uous composite bridge with small radius of curvature. The the original RC specimen. In response to the significant
stress distribution on concrete was complicated, and the peeling failure problem in traditional strengthening
tensile stress in the bridge deck caused by concrete methods, the authors proposed SPCC technique [26] to
shrinkage and temperature effect was unacceptable if the combine the steel plate and concrete materials in
traditional connector was adopted. By adopting the URSP strengthening. The steel plate shear strengthen technique
connector at piers and bent caps, tensile stress in deck is termed SPSS in this paper. Figures 9(a) and 9(b)
system was effectively redistributed, and the safety and illustrate the strengthen technique of flexural critical and
durability of the bridge was successfully ensured. shear critical RC specimens, respectively, and the design
details are as shown in Figs. 9(b) and 9(c). In the proposed
technique, the strengthen layer is composed of new
5 Steel plate concrete composite (SPCC) concrete, embedded rebar, steel plate, and studs. The
strengthen technique retrofit process is as follows. First, unload the live load on
existing RC specimens and use chiseling method or high-
Because of the significant increase of safety and durability pressure water jet to increase the surface roughness of the
requirement, many existing RC structures cannot meet the RC specimen. Second, bore holes on the side or the soffit
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 9

Fig. 8 Tianjin Haihe River Jizhao Bridge. (a) Elevation (unit: cm); (b) completed bridge; (c) application of URSP on site

Fig. 9 Steel plate composite concrete technique and its application in Wanliu bridge [27]. (a) SPCC bending retrofit; (b) SPSS with side
retrofit; (c) SPSS with U-shaped retrofit; (d) Wanliu Bridge under retrofit; (e) Wanliu Bridge after retrofit

of the RC specimen and use acetone to clean the holes. The concrete is used as connecting material between the
adhesives are used to embed rebar into the holes. Finally, original RC specimen and the steel plate. The advantages
the steel plate with studs are installed and new concrete is of the proposed are as follows. First, the SPCC technique
poured between the original RC member and the steel can significantly increase the ultimate capacity and
plate. stiffness of the specimen. Second, the rebar, concrete,
In the proposed SPCC strengthen method, the new and steel plate are traditional building materials with good
10 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

mechanical behavior and low cost. Third, the steel plate mode was the flexural failure mode with compression
transfers tensile stress in any direction and solves the softening of top concrete and tensile yielding of bottom
tensile cracking problem of concrete in complicated steel plate and rebar. The SPCC specimen showed
structures, such as the inclined bridge, the skew bridge, significantly enhanced ultimate capacity, stiffness, and
and the irregular slab. The steel plate significantly protects ductility compared with the reference RC beam. Under the
the concrete and avoids the corrosion of rebar inside, design service load, the maximum crack width of concrete
therefore meeting the service state requirements. Finally, was limited below the limit of the Chinese code [29].
the steel plate serves as formwork for pouring new Based on the test results of flexural critical SPCC
concrete. Apart from that, the SPCC specimens has specimens, the elaborate FE model considering interface
significantly improved antiknock ability, anti-permeability, slip was developed and the design recommendations were
and impact property. For the urban bridges, the proposed proposed, including the ultimate capacity, flexural stiff-
technology is especially beneficial for reducing the ness, interface design method between old and new
collision influence of super high vehicles. Recently, the concrete, and the design method of studs [30].
SPCC technique has been adopted in retrofitting many To investigate the fatigue behavior of SPCC technique,
bridges and achieved significant economic benefits, such the authors completed a fatigue test program composed of
as Zizhuyuan Bridge, Wanliu Bridge, Fengyi Bridge, 8 flexural critical SPCC specimens [31]. The test results
Madian Bridge, and Yangqiao Bridge. The retrofit process showed that the fatigue failure mode was the fatigue
of Wanliu Bridge is as shown in Figs. 9(d) and 9(e) [28]. In fracture of the bottom steel plate for each specimen.
Figs. 9(d) and 9(e), the longitudinal RC beams were Contrary to the traditional brittle fatigue failure mode of
retrofitted and the secondary beams was not retrofitted. RC beams, the SPCC specimens had significantly
Apart from that, the SPCC technique has also been used in enhanced ductility and showed negligible residual defor-
the Beijing Research Institute of Petroleum Exploration mation after unloading. The test results showed that the
and Development building, where the RC beam was fatigue design method in British code [32] had adequate
strengthened for demolishing columns. safety in the fatigue design of flexural critical SPCC
To investigate the flexural behavior of the SPCC beams. To investigate the SPSS technique, the authors
technique, a total of 11 flexural dominated specimens conducted a test program composed of 19 shear critical
were tested under static loading [26]. The test matrix is specimens [27]. In the test program, the SPSS beams were
illustrated in Table 1. Among the specimens, the RCB-1 compared with reference beams where the concrete was
and RCB-2 specimens were RC reference beams and other poured in a single batch. The test results showed that when
specimens were SPCC beams. The comparison of the interface between the old and new concrete was
moment-deflection curves between SPCC beam and the designed as recommended, the failure mode of SPSS
original RC beam are as shown in Fig. 10. The test results beams were the shear compression failure mode, and the
showed that when the interface between the old and new SPSS beams reached the same capacity as the reference
concrete was designed with adequate strength, the steel beams, where the concrete was poured in a single batch.
plate and concrete formed a composite section connected Based on the test results, the two-dimensional and three-
by the stud connectors and embedded rebar. The failure dimensional FE models were calibrated and the shear

Table 1 Test matrix of RC beam and strengthened beam

group nomenclature a (mm) tp (mm) lsp (mm) sr (mm) boundary condition loading prototype
/ RCB-1 1500 / / / four point loading no preloading
/ RCB-2 1500 / / / three point loading no preloading
I SCCSB-1 1500 8 4780 100 four point loading no preloading
I SCCSB-2 1500 8 4700 100 four point loading no preloading
II SCCSB-3 2500 8 4780 60/100 three point loading preloading and unloading
II SCCSB-4 2500 8 4780 60/100 three point loading preloading and unloading
II SCCSB-5 2500 8 4780 60/100 three point loading preloading and unloading
I SCCSB-6 1500 8 4780 60/100 four point loading no preloading
II SCCSB-7 2500 8 4780 75/100 three point loading preloading and unloading
III SCCSB-8 2500 8 4700 60/100 three point loading preloading without unloading
III SCCSB-9 2500 8 4700 60/100 three point loading preloading without unloading
III SCCSB-10 2500 8 4700 60/100 three point loading preloading without unloading
*
Note: a denotes the shear span length, tp denotes the bottom steel plate thickness, lsp denotes the length of the bottom steel plate, sr denotes the spacing of embedded
rebar.
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 11

Fig. 10 Comparison of moment capacity between steel plate bending strengthened beams and reference RC beams [26]. (a) Group I;
(b) Group II; (c) Group III

strength design method and interface design method of the of systematic design methods and computation models of
SPSS beams were proposed. To further investigate the composite joints. Some traditional joints have complicated
force transfer mechanism of the interface between the old details and are difficulty to be applied in engineering
and new concrete in the proposed SPCC technique, the practice. The appropriate construction technique of
authors conducted 6 direct shear tests composed of 6 composite joints are still lacking. In view of the insufficient
specimens [33]. The test results showed that the interface research on the composite joints, the authors proposed a
between the old and new concrete remained intact before variety of new composite joints and carried out a series of
reaching the ultimate capacity, and a stable residual shear research. Many experimental and theoretical research
capacity was observed. Based on the test results, the works were conducted and a series of theories and design
theoretical interface shear transfer model was proposed and methods were established.
the interface design method of embedded rebar was The traditional CFST-composite beam joints generally
developed. Furthermore, the maximum area limit for adopts disconnected inner diaphragm as shown in
embedded rebar was also proposed to avoid brittle failure Fig. 11(a). The key feature is that the flanges of the steel
of the interface. beam are welded to the steel tube of column, and the beam
moment and shear force are transmitted to the inner
diaphragm by complete joint penetration groove weld.
6 Innovative composite joints Under seismic load, the flanges of steel beam directly tear
the steel tube, which easily causes the weld fracture [35].
A large number of earthquake damage investigations have The ductility of the joints are relatively low because of
reported joint failures caused by improper details as an weld fracture failure. As shown in Fig. 11(b), the
important reason for structural failure [34]. Therefore, a composite joints with continuous inner diaphragms
reliable design of steel-concrete composite joints is the key significantly avoid the premature weld failure and prevent
to achieving a high-performance composite structural the tearing failure of CFST column. The authors conducted
system. Composite joints include not only the connection hysteretic test of totally 24 joints including both dis-
between the composite members, but also the connection connected and connected inner diaphragm. The test results
between composite members and other structural compo- showed that the composite joint with continuous inner
nents. In current research and applications, there is a dearth diaphragms had good ductility and strong energy con-

Fig. 11 CFST column-composite beam joints. (a) Traditional joints with disconnected inner diaphragm; (b) new joints with connected
inner diaphragm
12 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

sumption capability. Based on experimental research and Based on the test results, numerical simulation and
numerical simulation, the design method and construction theoretical analysis were carried out, and the design
details of the joint were proposed [36–41]. In addition, the method and construction recommendations were proposed
existing research on composite joints is mainly focused on [49]. In view of the dearth of the design method of SRC
planer joint tests. However, the joints in real structures column-steel truss composite joints, the seismic perfor-
often transfer spatial load in two directions under earth- mance tests of two large scale joints were carried out. The
quakes. To study the seismic performance of spatial shear force transfer mechanism and design method
composite joints with continuous inner diaphragm, considering the confinement effect of the joint core area
experimental study, numerical simulation, and theoretical was established, and the method to control the failure mode
analysis on seismic performance of the composite joints was proposed. A precise numerical model suitable for
are conducted. Theoretical model and design method of simulating the seismic performance of such joints was
spatial joints considering the bidirectional seismic forces developed [50].
were also developed [42–48].
The details of the traditional RC column-composite
beam joints are as shown in Fig. 12(a). These joints 7 Conclusions
generally have problems such as poor seismic ductility,
complicated details, difficulties in construction, and low This paper provides a state-of-the-art review of the cutting-
confinement effect in the core area. In view of these edge research and technologies in steel-concrete composite
problems of the traditional joints, the authors proposed a structures in nowadays China, including the long-span bi-
new steel sleeve composite joint as shown in Fig. 12(b). directional composite structures, the long-span composite
The proposed steel sleeve composite joint transfers transfer structures, the comprehensive crack control
tension, compression, bending, and shear loads directly method based on URSP connectors, the SPCC strengthen
through steel sleeve. The steel sleeve composite joint has technique, and the innovative composite joints. Based on
superior seismic performance. It avoids the exposure of the application of the aforementioned technologies, the
cracks and enhances the confinement effect on the core design of many long-span and heavy load structures have
area. Steel sleeves and steel beams are prefabricated in the been achieved in China. The key technical problems
factory and installed on site, which is convenient for circumventing the development of composite construction,
reducing the construction period. The construction techni- namely the ‘connecting’ and ‘cracking’ problems are also
ques of the steel sleeve composite joints have been widely well solved. The composite construction in China has
applied in projects such as the Guangzhou Hejing achieved higher applicability, higher safety, and higher
Building, the Dongguan Youth Activity Center, the economic and environmental performance. In the future,
Wuchang Railway Station, and the China New Science the application of composite structures will be expanded
and Technology Museum. Remarkable social and eco- from the building and bridge engineering to more
nomic benefits have been achieved. territories, such as ocean engineering, underground
In addition, the authors completed a multi-directional structure construction technology, military defense, and
load test of six CFST-steel beam tilt intersecting joints. strategic storage [51]. The composite structural systems

Fig. 12 Comparison between traditional and innovative RC column-steel beam joints. (a) Traditional concrete column-steel beam joints;
(b) steel sleeve composite joints
 Jianguo NIE et al. Technological development and engineering applications of novel steel-concrete composite structures 13

will be improved and the applications of new material will X. 2012 (in Chinese)
further raise the vitality of the composite construction. The 14. Nie J G, Tao M X. Construction Method for longitudinal Non-
life cycle design theory of composite structures under Shearing Screw Type Uplift-Restricted and Slip-Permitted Con-
extreme load conditions will also develop gradually. nector. ZL2011104150033.9. 2013 (in Chinese)
Therefore, the high-performance steel-concrete composite 15. Nie X, Nie J G, Tao M X, Fan J S, Zhang Z X, Tang H Y. Research
structures have a promising popularizing prospect in the on continuous composite bridge with new type of uplift-restricted
future. and slip-permitted connector. Journal of Harbin Institute of
Technology, 2012, 44(S1): 95–100 (in Chinese)
Acknowledgements The writers gratefully acknowledge the financial 16. Nie X. Study on the Structural Behavior of Key Components in
support provided by the Thirteenth Five-Year plan major projects supported
Steel-Concrete Composite Rigid Frame Bridge. Beijing: Tsinghua
by the National Key Research Program of China (Grant No.
2017YFC0703405) and the State Key Laboratory Program for Track University, 2013 (in Chinese)
Technology of High-Speed Railway (Grant No. 2017YJ094). 17. Han S W, Tao M X, Nie J G, Cai C S. Experimental and numerical
investigation on steel concrete composite beam with uplift-restricted
and slip-permitted screw-type connectors. In: Proceedings of
References fourteenth international symposium on structural engineering.
Beijing: 2016
1. Academic Divisions of Civil Engineering, Hydraulic Engineering, 18. Han S W. Experimental Study on Uplift-restricted and Slip-
and Architectural Engineering, Chinese Academy of Engineering. permitted Steel-concrete Composite Beams. Beijing: Tsinghua
The Development Status and Frontiers of Civil Engineering. University, 2016 (in Chinese)
Beijing: China Communications Press, 2012 (in Chinese) 19. Nie J G, Li Y X, Tao M X, Nie X. Uplift-restricted and slip permitted
2. Wen L Y. Experiment and Research on Two-way Steel-Concrete T-shape connectors. Journal of Bridge Engineering, 2014, 20(4):
Composite Slab-on-girder Structure. Beijing: Tsinghua University, 04014073
2007 (in Chinese) 20. Nie J G, Li Y X, Tao M X. Slip performance and hysteresis model of
3. Nie J G, Ma X W, Wen L Y. Experimental and numerical a new type of uplift restricted-slip free connectors. Engineering
investigation of steel-concrete composite waffle slab behavior. Mechanics, 2014, 31(11): 46–52 (in Chinese)
Journal of Structural Engineering, 2015, 141(11): 04015024 21. Nie J G, Li Y X, Tao M X, Zhang Z X, Tang H Y. Experimental
4. Guo Y T, Tao M X, Nie X, Fan J S. Rigidity and moment research on uplift performance of a new type of uplift restricted-slip
distribution of steel-concrete composite waffle floor systems free connector. China Journal of Highway and Transport, 2014, 27
considering the spatial effect. Engineering Structures, 2017, 143: (4): 38–45 (in Chinese)
498–510 22. Nie X, Fan J S, Shi Y J. Elastic analysis of composite beam with
5. Eldib M E A, Maaly H M, Beshay A W, Tolba M T. Modelling and local-released combined action. China Civil Engineering Journal,
analysis of two-way composite slabs. Journal of Constructional 2013, 46(11): 105–111 (in Chinese)
Steel Research, 2009, 65(5): 1236–1248 23. CMC (China Ministry of Construction). Code for Design of
6. Risna R R A, Anima P. Effect of spacing of grid beams and opening Strengthening Concrete Structures GB50367–2013. Beijing: China
size in a waffle slab with central opening. International Journal of Architecture and Buildings Press, 2013 (in Chinese)
Engineering Research and General Science, 2017, 5(2): 203–210 24. Raoof M, El-Rimawi J A, Hassanen M A H. Theoretical and
7. Nie J G, Sun T, Wen L Y, Liu J. Design of a long-span two-way experimental study on externally plated RC beams. Engineering
steel-concrete composite beam floor system for a conference Structures, 2000, 22(1): 85–101
exhibition center. Journal of Building Structures, 2004, 25(6): 25. Oehlers D J. Reinforced concrete beams with plates glued to their
123–125 (in Chinese) soffits. Journal of Structural Engineering, 1992, 118(8): 2023–2038
8. Nie J G, Pan W H, Tao M X, Zhu Y Z. Experimental and numerical 26. Nie J G, Zhao J, Tang L. Application of steel plate and concrete
investigations of composite frames with innovative composite composite to strengthening of reinforced concrete girder. Bridge
transfer beams. Journal of Structural Engineering, 2017, 143(7): Construction, 2007, (3): 76–79 (in Chinese)
04017041 27. Wang J J, Tao M X, Zhou M, Nie X. Force transfer mechanism in
9. Nie J G, Zhu Y Z, Fan J S. Experimental study on steel-concrete RC beams strengthened in shear by means of steel plated concrete.
composite transfer frame. Journal of Building Structures, 2009, 30 Engineering Structures, 2018, 171: 56–71
(4): 30–37 (in Chinese) 28. Yang Y, Zhang X G, Fan J S, Bai Y. Bridge widening with
10. Zhu Y Z. Experiment and Research on Steel-Concrete Composite composite steel-concrete girders: application and analysis of live
Transfer Frame. Beijing: Tsinghua University, 2008 (in Chinese) load distribution. Advances in Concrete Construction, 2015, 3(4):
11. Nie J G. Steel-Concrete Composite Bridge Structure. Beijing: China 295–316
Communications Press, 2011 29. CMC (China Ministry of Construction). Code for Design of
12. Nie J G, Tao M X, Zhang Z X. Longitudinally Slidable Steel- Reinforced Concrete Structures GB50011–2010. Beijing: China
Concrete Anti-Lifting Connector and the Construction Method. Architecture and Buildings Press, 2010 (in Chinese)
ZL201010598394.7. 2012 (in Chinese) 30. Zhao J. Experimental and Theoretical Research on Flexural
13. Nie J G, Tao M X. Longitudinal T-type Uplift-Restricted and Slip- Strengthening of RC Beams Using Steel Plate-concrete Composite
Permitted Connector and Construction Method. ZL201110065691. Technique. Beijing: Tsinghua University, 2008 (in Chinese)
14 Front. Struct. Civ. Eng. 2019, 13(1): 1–14

31. Nie J G, Wang Y H, Cai C S. Experimental research on fatigue 42. Fan J S, Zhou H, Nie J G, Li Q W. Experimental study on seismic
behavior of RC beams strengthened with steel plate-concrete performance of three-dimensional composite beam-to-column joint.
composite technique. Journal of Structural Engineering, 2011, 137 China Civil Engineering Journal, 2014, 47(4): 47–55 (in Chinese)
(7): 772–781 43. Fan J S, Zhou H, Nie J G, Li Q W. Research on seismic responses of
32. BSI. Code of Practice for Fatigue. BS5400, 1980 3D joints with CFT column and composite beam under bi-
33. Nie J G, Wang Y H, Zhang X G, Fan J S, Cai C S. Mechanical directional loading. Journal of Building Structures, 2012, 33(6):
behavior of composite joints for connecting existing concrete 50–58 (in Chinese)
bridges and steel-concrete composite beams. Journal of Construc- 44. Zhou H. Finite Element Analysis of 3D Composite Joints Under
tional Steel Research, 2012, 75: 11–20 Two-way Load. Beijing: China Steel Construction Society, 2010 (in
34. Zhong S T, Bai G L. Beam-to-column Frame Connections of Tall- Chinese)
building Composite Structures: Analysis and Design. Beijing: China 45. Tao M X, Nie J G. Multi-scale efficient numerical model of concrete
communication press, 2006 (in Chinese) filled steel tube-composite beam joint for nonlinear analysis of
35. AISC. Seismic provisions for structural steel buildings. ANSI/AISC structural systems. China Civil Engineering Journal, 2014, 47(9):
341–16, 2016 57–69 (in Chinese)
36. Nie J G. Method for calculation of skeleton curves of connections of 46. Fan J S, Li Q W, Nie J G, Zhou H. Experimental study on the
concrete-filled steel square tubular columns with inner diaphragms. seismic performance of 3D joints between concrete-filled square
China Civil Engineering Journal, 2008, 41(4): 1–7 (in Chinese) steel tubular columns and composite beams. Journal of Structural
37. Nie J G, Qin K, Rong L. Experimental study on seismic behavior of Engineering, 2014, 140(12): 04014094
connections composed of concrete-filled square steel tubular 47. Tao M X, Nie J G. Multi-scale modeling for deformation mechanism
columns and steel-concrete composite beams with interior dia- analysis of composite joint substructures. Engineering Structures,
phragms. Journal of Building Structures, 2006, 27(4): 1–9 (in 2018, 118: 55–73
Chinese) 48. Fan J S, Liu C, Yang Y, Bai Y, Wu C. Shear capacity of 3D
38. Nie J G, Qin K, Zhang G B. Experimental research and theoretical composite CFT joints subjected to symmetric loading condition.
analysis on flexural capacity of connections for concrete-filled steel Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 2015, 112: 242–251
square tubular columns with inner diaphragms. Journal of 49. Nie J G, Chen Z, Zhang G W D, Xiao Y. Experimental study on
Architecture and Civil Engineering, 2005(1): 42–49, 54 (in Chinese) joints with non-perpendicular elements in concrete-filled steel tube
39. Nie J G, Qin K. Study on shear resistance performance of concrete- column with steel beam systems. Industrial Construction, 2004, 12:
filled square steel tubular column joints. Journal of Building 23–26,58 (in Chinese)
Structures, 2007(4): 8–17 (in Chinese) 50. Tao M X, Fan J S, Nie J G, Zhao N, Li T. Theoretical analysis on
40. Xu G G, Nie J G. Experimental study of connections of concrete- aseismic behavior of steel reinforced concrete column-steel truss
filled square steel tubular columns with continuous diaphragms. beam composite joints. Engineering Mechanics, 2009, 26(11): 152–
China Civil Engineering Journal, 2011, 44(8): 25–32(in Chinese) 155 (in Chinese)
41. Nie J G, Qin K, Cai C S. Seismic behavior of connections composed 51. Tao M X, Nie J G, Fan J S, Pan W H, Wang J J, Liu C. Development
of CFSSTCs and steel-concrete composite beams-experimental trends and path of civil and structural engineering technologies
study. Journal of Constructional Steel Research, 2008, 64: 1178– oriented to year 2035. China Engineering Science, 2017, 19(1): 73–
1191 79

View publication stats