Time-lapse of one test on a RC wall with shape-memory alloy rebars performed at LEMSC (June 2019).
Contact : João Almeida
Advancements on understanding and simulation of structural response rely closely on the availability of experimental data, which unfortunately is often insufficient, scattered, or inexistent. Large-scale testing is one of my research lines, wherein I privilege integrated instrumentation of both local (e.g. strains) and global quantities (e.g. displacements). Multi-scale measures are instrumental in containing the large potential for numerical speculation in detailed nonlinear analyses, hence playing a crucial role on model development, calibration, and validation.
Some past experimental programs include the testing of reinforced concrete walls subjected to in-plane and out-of-plane loading, an investigation on thin concrete boundary elements with a single layer of reinforcement prone to out-of-plane instability, or still the extensive campaign on 24 RC members to assess the influence of lap splices.
At UCLouvain, most of the experimental tests are performed at the Laboratoire des Essaies Mécaniques, Structures et Génie Civil (LEMSC), one of the technological platforms of iMMC. Recently, experimental tests on RC walls with shape-memory alloy rebars were performed (see time-lapse), while tests on vertical impact are foreseen for the near future.
If you are working on any of the above (or related) topics and have ideas of collaborative research, please contact me.