Meta-Analysis of Insulated Concrete Wall Panel Design Methods for Shear and Flexure Behavior

Authors

Maryam Al-Bayati, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

First Advisor

Marc Maguire

Date of this Version

11-2023

Citation

A thesis presented to the faculty of the Graduate College at the University of Nebraska in partial fulfillment of requirements for the degree of Master of Science

Major: Construction Engineering and Management

Under the supervision of Professor Marc Maguire

Lincoln, Nebraska, November 2023

Comments

Copyright 2023, Maryam Al-Bayati

Abstract

Insulated Concrete wall panels have been designed and constructed since the early 1950s with various shear ties, dimensions, and methods; nonetheless, thermal bridging and rational design are still a concern. Many companies have recently developed plastic connectors that have gradually replaced solid concrete sections and steel connectors due to their superior thermal efficiency and strength. However, there is no generally accepted method for predicting the behavior of sandwich wall panels in structural engineering practice or codes, but many methods have been used since the early 1920. This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of current methods for predicting the flexural performance of concrete sandwich wall panels under out-of-plane loading. The analysis is conducted within the elastic range using eight different methods found in the literature. Over ninety full-scale specimens are reviewed and analyzed using these methods, which include commercially available connectors and various concrete properties and panel dimensions, for prestress, mild reinforced concrete. The results show that the Beam Spring Model (BSM), Mechanics-based modeling (MBM), Iterative and Simplified Sandwich Beam Theory (ISBT) for Partially Composite Concrete Wall Panels, and Simplified Sandwich Beam Theory (SSBT) methods produce similar results for cracking load and deflections with low variability, while the Timoshenko-Ehrenfest Bea, Beam on elastic foundation approach (Holmberg and Plem), Allen's method, and the Simplified Model for Partially Composite Insulated Panels (SMPCIP) methods produce inconsistent results compared to reference testing. Furthermore, this study included a shear flow analysis using data from literature for 102 panels to examine the shear flow performance for both average and discrete methods. In which both methods did not have agreement compared to reference testing.

Advisor: Marc Maguire