SC for Industrial, Energy and Nuclear Construction Efficiency

SCIENCE investigated the use of steel-concrete composite (SC) modular systems for use in industrial applications. This form of construction offers many advantages over traditional reinforced concrete (RC), including speed of construction and structural efficiency. The project focused on generating experimental and numerical data to fill gaps in the current knowledge and use it for developing design guidelines. Tests were carried out to study the structural behaviour of SC members and their connections at ambient temperature, elevated temperatures (due to thermal accident scenarios specific to NPPs) and in the fire situation. The experimental results were used for calibration of numerical models and validation of design models and analytical expressions for estimating the resistance. The validated numerical models were used in parametric studies to investigate configurations other than those tested and assess the role of a range of parameters. Based on the experimental and numerical findings, design methodologies for members and connections under various actions and their combination were developed. A rigorous design methodology was also developed for the execution stage, which, in many cases, can govern the design of the plates. The project led to the publication of a guide for the design of SC structures, which was drafted in the Eurocode format for easy implementation in the future. It has also resulted in a large number of published papers, two PhD thesis, two MSc dissertations and a Patent application.

Steel-concrete (SC) is a novel types of concrete structure, which can replace reinforced-concrete in demanding buildings. In this project we investigated if SC is suitable for nuclear-power plant buildings.

The project has shown that SC has adequate performance in all areas of loading investigated (i.e. static, cyclic, elevated temperatures, fire etc.), and has produced ample background material for standardization.