{"id":9371,"date":"2015-06-01T11:39:59","date_gmt":"2015-06-01T15:39:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/?p=9371"},"modified":"2016-12-21T14:05:51","modified_gmt":"2016-12-21T19:05:51","slug":"whats-wrong-with-my-precast-concrete-garage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.constructionspecifier.com\/whats-wrong-with-my-precast-concrete-garage\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s wrong with my precast concrete garage?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"parking_IMG_4664\"<\/a>
All images courtesy Hoffman Architects<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

by Lawrence E. Keenan, PE, AIA
\n<\/strong>Precast double-tee construction has become a dominant method for building parking garages in North America. The double-tee beam deck system of this construction type provides a finished wearing surface, supports vehicle loading, and forms an integral part of the lateral force-resisting system. However, maintenance and repair of deck connections is a common problem with this type of construction. The most common cause is perhaps the least considered.<\/p>\n

Connections between double-tee beams are subject to a varied array of loads from seismic events and from the deck\u2019s temperature-induced expansion and contraction. Loading from vehicles is often regarded as small and insignificant in comparison with seismic loading\u2014unfortunately, the effects of this cyclic deflection are not often addressed in typical precast concrete garage construction. However, over time, vehicular loading can cause widespread failure of these connections and, as such, the building codes require it be considered in design.<\/p>\n

\"parking_Figure<\/a>
Figure 1:<\/strong> Deflection of double-tee beam under loading\u2014what happens when you feel your tires thumping through a precast parking garage. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The rhythmic thumping of tires while driving through a precast parking garage is a familiar experience of modern life. As the wheel traverses each beam, load is applied, and the double-tee beam deflects downward (Figure 1).<\/p>\n

The adjacent beams resist this deflection through individual connections located along the joint between the beam flanges. Each connection shares a portion of the load proportional to the deflected shape of the beam.<\/p>\n

As connections close to the beam\u2019s center resist a greater amount of deflection, they transfer more load. As the vehicle traverses across the joint, loading of the connections is abruptly reversed (Figure 2).<\/p>\n

\"Figure<\/a>
Figure 2<\/strong>: Exaggerated depiction of the beam deflection at flange joint connection. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As load is applied to the connection, relative deflection of adjacent concrete flanges is resisted by a field-installed erection bar. This erection bar is fixed on either side by welds, and bending moment is applied to the welds about an axis parallel to the joint (Figure 3). This moment creates a concentration of tensile stress at the root of the weld, followed immediately by compression stress as the wheel traverses the joint. With enough cycles, this stress reversal leads to fatigue failure of the weld (Figure 4).<\/p>\n

Fatigue
\n<\/strong>Fatigue is the process by which a material becomes weakened through cyclic loading. Over time, repeated loading leads to the development and propagation of cracks, and the eventual failure of the weld. At the microscopic level, fatigue failure occurs in three steps.<\/p>\n

1. Crack initiation
\n<\/em>The configuration of connections<\/a> creates a severe notch at the root of the weld that is the precipitating point for crack initiation. Surface discontinuities typically cause a localized increase in stress and a nucleation point for cracks. In a welded connection, the root of the weld provides a highly irregular crevice that precipitates crack formation. In fact, many industry standards and model codes prohibit the root of the weld from being subject to tension for this very reason.<\/p>\n

2. Crack propagation
\n<\/em>The crack grows at this stage in a slow, stable manner\u2014the rate of which depends on the magnitude of the stress cycle. As microscopic cracks grow into macroscopic cracks, the intact area of the weld is reduced, increasing stress on the remaining cross-section and accelerating the rate of propagation.<\/p>\n

\"parking_Figure<\/a>
Figure 3:<\/strong> The internal forces and deflected shape (exaggerated) of a typical flange connection under vertical loading. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Figure<\/a>
Figure 4:<\/strong> The top image is an example of fatigue failure of a flat-bar connection. At the bottom is a fatigue failure of a dowel-type connection. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

 <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"parking_Figure<\/a>
Figure 5:<\/strong> Three stages of fatigue failure. <\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

3. Failure
\n<\/em>When the strength of the remaining intact cross-section is insufficient to withstand the applied load, failure occurs. It is typically abrupt\u2014the weld severs completely, all at once, along a thin line at the outer face of the weld (Figure 5).<\/p>\n

While it may seem as though such acute failure would require sustained and intense loading, it is a characteristic of fatigue that crack initiation and propagation need not occur at high stress. The main factors leading to fatigue failure are:<\/p>\n