Experimental and Numerical Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Columns under Lateral Impact Loading

Abstract

Reinforced concrete bridge columns (RCCs) are vulnerable to collisions with vehicles or vessels. To assess the performance of RCCs under lateral impact loading and to guide the impact-resistant design of RCCs, scaled model tests and numerical simulations were carried out in this study. An experimental facility was designed, and three sets of RCC specimens were tested. The specimens were available in three sizes: 60 cm × 14 cm × 14 cm, 80 cm × 14 cm × 14 cm, and 80 cm × 20 cm × 20 cm. Finite element models of RCCs were created in LS-DYNA, and parametric studies were carried out to investigate the variables influencing the impact resistance of RCCs. According to the findings, the impact mass and velocity had a positive correlation with the extreme value of dynamic strain. When the mass of a model car increased by 22.8% and 45.6% during the impact test, the extreme concrete strain at the same position increased by 22.5% and 42.3%, respectively. In addition, as the longitudinal reinforcement ratio increased, RCCs exhibited significantly less plastic deformation and damage. The findings of this study aided in the formulation of several recommendations for future research.