CAREER: Tools and Research to Advance the Use of Strut-and-Tie Models in Education and Design

压杆系杆方法(STM)是一种新兴的合理的设计方法，它有可能彻底改变工程师在结构混凝土中设计D-(不连续)区域的方式。D区是指结构中应变存在复杂变化的部分，例如在节点、牛腿和深梁中，以及在靠近集中力、开口或其他不连续的区域。这项研究项目将包括三项活动，重点是克服阻碍STM在教育和实践社区取得进展的障碍。(I)将进行急需的实验研究，以帮助评估压杆、拉杆和节点的尺寸、刚度和强度特性。(Ii)将开发一个基于计算机的设计程序，以消除重复计算桁架几何形状、构件尺寸和应力值的繁琐设计任务。(Iii)将创建教育资源，帮助教师、学生和实践者理解和使用这一陌生的设计方法。这项研究的结果将在项目网站www.ce.uiuc.edu/kuchma/strut&amp；tiehttp://www.ce.uiuc.edu/kuchma/strut&tie.上公布通过STM的进步，学生和工程师将能够通过简单地关注桁架中的力的流动来设计所有类型的D区。这将导致在我们的民用基础设施中建设更可靠和更有效率的D区。

The Strut-and-Tie Method (STM) is an emerging and rational design procedure that has the potential to revolutionize the way that engineers design D-(Discontinuity) Regions in structural concrete. D-Regions are those portions of a structure in which there is a complex variation in strain, such as in joints, corbels, and deep beams, as well as in regions near a concentrated force, opening or another discontinuity. This research project will consist of three activities that are focused on overcoming barriers that stand in the way of the STM's advance in the educational and practicing communities. (i) Much-needed experimental research will be conducted to help assess the dimensions, stiffness, and strength characteristics of struts, ties, and nodes. (ii) A computer-based design program will be developed that eliminates the cumbersome design tasks of making repetitive calculations of truss geometry, member dimensions, and stress values. (iii) Educational resources will be created to aid teachers, students, and practitioners in the understanding and use of this unfamiliar design methodology. The results of this research will be disseminated on a project web site www.ce.uiuc.edu/kuchma/strut&tiehttp://www.ce.uiuc.edu/kuchma/strut%26tie. Through the advance of the STM, students and engineers will be able to design all types of D-Regions by simply focusing on the flow of forces in a truss. This will result in the construction of more reliable and efficient D-Regions in our civil infrastructure.