Study on uneven settlement and correction of steel frame structures based on numerical simulation method.

Area of Science:

• Structural Engineering
• Geotechnical Engineering
• Computational Mechanics

Background:

• Uneven settlement poses significant risks to building stability and safety.
• Lifting-correction is a critical technique for mitigating settlement-induced structural damage.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of uneven settlement on a light-steel structure.
• To evaluate and compare different lifting-correction methods for optimal structural restoration.
• To provide practical guidance for engineers dealing with building settlement issues.

Main Methods:

• Development of a sophisticated finite element (FE) model in ABAQUS with refined material constitutive models.
• Analysis of structural responses including modal analysis, stress field analysis, and displacement response.
• Comparative evaluation of four lifting-correction strategies: simultaneous breaking columns (BC), chessboard-style BC, simultaneous lifting columns (LC), and multi-stage LC.

Main Results:

• Uneven settlement decreases structural eigenvalues and frequencies, leading to instability and potential joint yielding.
• The chessboard-style BC method causes less initial stress field disturbance compared to simultaneous BC.
• Multi-stage LC method demonstrates superior performance in stress fields, displacement, damage, energy dissipation, and internal forces compared to simultaneous LC.

Conclusions:

• The chessboard-style breaking columns and multi-stage lifting columns methods are recommended for practical application.
• These recommended methods minimize structural disturbance and enhance safety during lifting-correction procedures.
• The study offers valuable insights for engineers addressing uneven settlement in buildings.