{"title":"An improved adaptive EMD-SVD method for railway bridge dynamic LG-strain processing under moving trainloads","authors":"Bitao Wu , Wenpu Tang , Zhenwei Zhou , Yizhong Tan , Shizhi Chen , Yulin Feng","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109777","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109777","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper proposes an improved adaptive Empirical Mode Decomposition (EMD) method for extracting high-precision dynamic distributed strain responses in railway bridges subjected to moving train loads. Considering the specific frequency characteristics of railway bridges, the improved method integrates Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) with EMD to effectively separate dynamic distributed strain components. Then, case studies comparing wavelet decomposition, EMD, and the proposed improved method are conducted. The study specifically investigates the impact of these signal processing techniques on the accuracy of separating dynamic and quasi-static strains under moving train loads, aiming to identify the optimal method for dynamic distributed strain measurements. The proposed method is experimentally validated on a full-scale bridge of the Shanghai-Kunming high-speed railway. Results demonstrate that the improved adaptive method offers advantages in processing efficiency and stability, and its performance is unaffected by the selection of the number of Intrinsic Mode Functions (IMFs). This enhanced method improves signal processing efficiency and accuracy, thus enabling its suitability for batch processing large-scale monitoring data.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109777"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686320","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109750
Georgiana Bunea , Florin Leon , Ionuţ-Ovidiu Toma
{"title":"Machine learning approach in the quantitative evaluation of the seismic behaviour for 3D reinforced concrete frame structures","authors":"Georgiana Bunea , Florin Leon , Ionuţ-Ovidiu Toma","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109750","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109750","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The implementation of performance-based seismic design (PBSD) in the design and optimization of the structural system of buildings becomes paramount in view of recent seismic design codes. The large number of simulations and analyses to be conducted for specific types of structures and specific seismic areas are prerequisites of the PBSD methodology. The application of machine learning (ML) techniques proved effective for the development of prediction models that have the potential to significantly minimize the amount of time required for structural damage assessment. Artificial neural networks (ANNs) demonstrated the ability to generalize by accurately predicting output parameters for unseen input parameters not included in the training dataset. In this research, an ANN was used for predicting structural damage parameters corresponding to 3D reinforced concrete frame structure subjected to seismic scenarios and for evaluating the influence of various seismic actions on the structures. A total of 243 3D-reinforced concrete models were generated and subjected to 14 seismic scenarios. Thus, 3402 input-output data sets were obtained and were used for ANN training (80 %) and validation (20 %). A total of 10 input parameters were considered to influence the seismic behaviour and damage levels in the RC frame structures. Out of the 6 input structural parameters, the number of stories, the span width and the width of the column cross-section have the highest impact on the seismic damage of reinforced frame structures. From the 4 input parameters characterizing the seismic motion, the peak ground velocity (PGV) and peak ground acceleration (PGA), were found to be the most important seismic parameters which influenced the damage of the analysed structures. The performance of the ANN was compared against two other machine learning algorithms commonly used in civil engineering applications: Random Forest (RF) and Extreme Gradient Boosting (XGBoost). While these algorithms performed marginally better than ANN in the training and validation stages, they did not manage to be accurate in the testing phase when using newly generated data sets. The considered output parameters were: fundamental period of vibration for the non-damaged and damaged states, final softening index, interstory drift ratio, maximum displacements and maximum absolute accelerations. The ANN was able to accurately predict all output parameters (correlation coefficient larger than 0.85) with the exception of final softening index that may be influence by more complex phenomena that are beyond the scope of this paper. The proposed ANN-based prediction model proves to be a fast and reliable tool for quickly assessing the damage state of 3D reinforced concrete frame structures subjected to different seismic scenarios. It can be further enhanced and extended to include other parameters not considered at this stage of research as well as being included in stacked ML algorithms.</div></d","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109750"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686181","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109768
Ji Qian , Linqiang Zhou , Zhenzhen Qiao , Shijie Song , Fei Wang
{"title":"Characterization of stresses under anchor in prestressing steel strands by contact properties at the anchorage interface","authors":"Ji Qian , Linqiang Zhou , Zhenzhen Qiao , Shijie Song , Fei Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109768","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109768","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The assessment of the stress state of prestressed steel strands is currently the primary basis for assessing the safety and longevity of prestressed structural systems. In response to the existing lack of efficient techniques for detecting prestressing of steel strands in prestressed girder bridges, the interaction between the anchorage contact interface (specifically the contact interface between the multi-hole anchorage and the anchor bearing plate, MHA-ABP interface) and the ultrasonic signal is investigated experimentally in this study. In addition, the relationship between the contact characteristics of the MHA-ABP interface and the interface pressure is established. Further tests were then carried out on the MHA-MHA interface with one and seven steel strands to investigate the contact characteristics of the MHA-MHA interface under low and high stress conditions. The results show that the reflection coefficient and the non-linear stiffness of the MHA-ABP and MHA-MHA interfaces exhibit a non-linear decreasing correlation with the interface pressure (<em>R</em><sub>MHA-MHA</sub>/ <em>R</em><sub>MHA-ABP</sub> ≈ 1/2.8, <em>K</em><sub>1, MHA-MHA</sub>/<em>K</em><sub>1, MHA-ABP</sub> ≈ 2.45). Furthermore, linear stiffness and interface pressure follow the theoretical model of a power-law function. The reflection coefficient, linear stiffness and non-linear stiffness show a stabilization with increasing interface pressure. There is a strong correlation between these three indicators and the interface pressure, allowing an effective response to stress variations in the steel strand. This correlation helps to overcome the problem of low accuracy of detection results caused by limitations imposed by the steel strand boundary and other conditions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109768"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686681","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109738
Pengcheng Li, Mingyao Huang, Xueyou Quan, Yanwen Kuang, Feiyi Chen, Bao Liu, Hao Li
{"title":"Experimental and numerical investigation into the tensile performance of a novel self-adaptive grouting evolved sleeve","authors":"Pengcheng Li, Mingyao Huang, Xueyou Quan, Yanwen Kuang, Feiyi Chen, Bao Liu, Hao Li","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109738","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109738","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In prefabricated concrete structures, vertical rebars are typically connected using grouting sleeves. However, current grouting sleeves are prone to unavoidable and hard-to-detect grouting defects during installation, which pose potential risks to the safety of these structures. To address this challenge, this paper proposes a novel self-adaptive grouting evolved sleeve (SAGES) connection. Unlike traditional grouting sleeves, which rely on a standard grouting process, the SAGES employs a \"pregrout-rebar\" process, which improves the controllability of grouting quality and enhances its compatibility with construction errors. The design of the steel bar end configuration and the geometric optimization of its internal conical section significantly enhance these properties. Uniaxial tensile tests were conducted on the proposed SAGES to assess its mechanical properties under static tensile conditions. Additionally, ABAQUS software was used to perform a series of analyses to explore the factors influencing the anchorage mechanism and load-bearing performance of SAGES. The findings demonstrate that the SAGES connection, through its unique grouting process, ensures complete grouting. Moreover, the mixed anchorage mechanism effectively prevents sliding failure of the connection components, allowing for the full utilization of the material performance of the connecting reinforcement.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109738"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686683","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Study on the investigation of cracks identification and spatio-temporal distribution law in cemented sand and gravel materials","authors":"Xiancai Zhang, Feihao Chen, Hu Huang, Zhaohan Liu, Ruihang Li, Lixia Guo","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109769","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109769","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>To interpret the crack development and evolution characteristics and damage failure mechanism of cemented sand and gravel (CSG) material,uniaxial compression tests were carried out on CSG with different aggregate gradations and water-binder ratios, and the damage process of CSG material was monitored using an acoustic emission (AE) system. The RA-AF and GMM methods were used to comprehensively identify the corresponding crack development mechanisms, while a mesoscale discrete element model of CSG material was established and embedded in the moment tensor theory to simulate the AE process, which further quantitatively describes the damage mechanism of CSG material. The results show that aggregate gradation and water cement ratio have a significant effect on the stress-strain curve and compressive strength of CSG material, and different optimal water cement ratios exist for different aggregate gradations; the damage process is divided into four stages by the characteristics of AE parameters; initial crack closure, new crack expansion, crack coalescence and post-peak damage; the crack initiation, expansion and coalescence processes of CSG material occur before the peak stress, and the crack spatial distribution is mainly decentralized, with sparse distribution of small cracks and dense distribution of large cracks; The GMM crack classification results show tensile cracking at high water-cement ratio and mixed tensile-shear cracking at low water-cement ratio;;during the loading process of numerical simulation, the interfacial cracks around the aggregate show relative slip and extrusion motions, and the expansion of shear and mixed-mode cracks predominates at mesoscale, which ultimately leads to the loss of cohesion between aggregate and cement and the destruction of the material. The results of the study make up for the lack of CSG material mesoscale mechanism study and provide theoretical support for CSG material application.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109769"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686687","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109766
Yingguang Wang
{"title":"An enhanced second-order method in structural reliability analyses","authors":"Yingguang Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109766","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109766","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This paper proposes a more sophisticated second-order method for the analysis of structural reliability. The analysis procedures of this new method comprise: (1) Performing the second-order approximation of the limit state surface by the second order Taylor series expansion at the most probable failure point; (2) Obtaining a closed-form expression for a hyperparabolic surface as an approximate failure surface; (3) Breaking down the inner integral as specified in the failure probability equation into two parts; (4) Executing the integration in the failure probability equation and adding four terms so that the analytical result approaches the accurate result in an asymptotically increasing manner. Two calculation examples were utilized in this study to illustrate the accuracy and robustness of our proposed new enhanced second-order method for determining the failure probability in structural reliability analyses. The numerical calculation results showed that for these nonlinear problems the traditional Breitung method can give inaccurate results when compared with the Monte Carlo simulation results. On the contrary, when utilizing our proposed new enhanced second-order method, it is clear that the obtained failure probability results are more accurate when compared with the Monte Carlo simulation results. These computational results in this study convincingly substantiate that our proposed new enhanced second-order method is more accurate and robust than the traditional Breitung method for the nonlinear problems in structural reliability studies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109766"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686690","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109756
Maria Teresa De Risi , Giulia Angelucci , Vincenzo Manfredi , Marco Terrenzi , Guido Camata , Angelo Masi , Fabrizio Mollaioli , Giuseppe Quaranta , Enrico Spacone , Gerardo Mario Verderame
{"title":"Seismic performance of Italian pre-code RC buildings strengthened via local interventions: Fragility curves and failure rates","authors":"Maria Teresa De Risi , Giulia Angelucci , Vincenzo Manfredi , Marco Terrenzi , Guido Camata , Angelo Masi , Fabrizio Mollaioli , Giuseppe Quaranta , Enrico Spacone , Gerardo Mario Verderame","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109756","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109756","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The existing Italian Reinforced Concrete (RC) building stock exhibits a significant seismic vulnerability. Previous works conducted under the national project <em>Implicit Risk according to the Italian Building Codes</em> (<em>Rischio Implicito secondo le Norme Tecniche per le Costruzioni, RINTC</em>) have demonstrated that seismic failure rates of pre-70 structures are higher than those of ‘70 s or ‘80s-‘90 s buildings, especially at collapse and mainly due to the occurrence of shear failures. Extensive retrofitting efforts are, thus, required for these buildings. This work investigates the potential improvement in seismic performance of pre-70 RC buildings by particularly addressing all the (very) limiting shear failures in RC members, including beam-column joints and squat columns. The retrofitting design aims at increasing the as-built capacity to meet that requested for newly designed buildings at the Life Safety Limit State, only, according to the Italian code prescriptions about existing buildings. In order to provide valuable insights into the seismic mitigation framework, a commonly adopted, cost-effective strategy, compliant with the current code requirements, has been considered. This strategy is based on local interventions designed to strengthen the considered buildings without significantly modifying their lateral stiffness. The effectiveness of this strategy is evaluated through nonlinear analyses of 3- and 6-storey buildings designed for gravity loads only (GLD) or according to obsolete seismic codes (SLD). Refined modelling strategies have been implemented, also including the presence of masonry infills. Fragility curves and failure rates have been lastly obtained for two performance levels (i.e. Global Collapse, GC, and Usability-Preventing Damage, UPD), and compared with the relevant as-built buildings to quantify the seismic improvement. As a result of the adopted local strategy and the selected retrofitting techniques, it is found that failure rates at UPD do not change significantly. However, the seismic performance at GC improves remarkably, particularly for buildings designed in compliance with outdated seismic codes.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109756"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686180","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109765
Yazhi Zhu , Norith Iv , Shuling Hu , Monjee Almustafa , Moncef L. Nehdi
{"title":"Interpretable natural gradient boosting model for probabilistic response evaluation of RC columns under blast loads","authors":"Yazhi Zhu , Norith Iv , Shuling Hu , Monjee Almustafa , Moncef L. Nehdi","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109765","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109765","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Reinforced concrete (RC) structures are susceptible to partial or complete progressive collapse initiated by column failures under blast loads. Understanding and predicting the RC column’s responses subjected to blast loads is crucial for implementing proactive solutions to protect life and mitigate economic loss. This research aims to develop a probabilistic displacement prediction model for RC columns under blast loads by adopting a new machine learning algorithm, Natural Gradient Boosting (NGBoost), and to understand the influence of design parameters on the peak and the corresponding discreteness of the RC column’s displacement responses by interpreting the developed NGBoost model. The research outcomes demonstrate that the developed NGBoost model achieves superior accuracy compared to the single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) method, concurrently offering robust estimates of prediction uncertainties. The feature of the blast loads, including the reflected impulse and reflected pressure, shows a much higher influence than the design parameters on the displacement responses of the RC columns under blast loads. Design parameters such as longitudinal steel reinforcement ratio and concrete compressive strength exhibit noteworthy influence on peak displacement, while longitudinal steel yield strength, transverse steel yield strength, and concrete compressive strength significantly impact the discreteness of the RC column's displacement responses under blast loads. These insightful findings can serve as practical references for enhancing the design of RC columns against blast loads.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109765"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144686682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
StructuresPub Date : 2025-07-23DOI: 10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109736
Xin Huang, Ruo-Yu Zhang, Yu Chen, Qi Hou, Kun Wu
{"title":"Seismic loss risk and resilience assessment of air traffic control towers considering equipment functionality","authors":"Xin Huang, Ruo-Yu Zhang, Yu Chen, Qi Hou, Kun Wu","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109736","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109736","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Seismic loss risk assessments and evaluations of the seismic resilience of tower systems are critical for predicting operational safety at airports during seismic events. A multidimensional fragility model was developed utilizing the peak floor acceleration and the peak interstory displacement angle as seismic demand parameters, with the former indicating the impact on air traffic control (ATC) equipment. On the basis of this model and seismic hazard analysis, a seismic loss risk assessment method was proposed for the tower system, encompassing both the tower structure and ATC equipment. Furthermore, a seismic resilience assessment framework was established using loss and recovery functions to examine the functional degradation and restoration timelines for airport towers. The investigation revealed that the probability of failure for the tower system under near-field earthquakes was significantly greater than that under far-field earthquakes, for example, 38.0 % versus 93.0 % in the immediate occupancy (IO) limit state. When comparing the fragility results based on single versus dual seismic demand parameters, the multidimensional model yields more conservative predictions. For far-field earthquakes in the normal operation (NO) limit state, the fragility curves have failure probabilities of 66.4 %, 24.6 %, and 85.4 % for a single displacement angle, a single floor acceleration, and multidimensional models, respectively. The indirect economic losses of the tower system are significantly higher than the direct losses. Under near-field earthquake conditions at the DS<sub>3</sub> limit state with a 9-degree seismic fortification, the maximum direct economic loss is 1168800 yuan, while the maximum indirect economic loss reaches 6428600 yuan. The functional losses of the tower system and ATC equipment during rare near-field earthquakes under 8 degrees of seismic fortification are 48 % and 10 %, respectively, with corresponding recovery times of 153.6 and 20.36 days.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109736"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144696629","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Impact of fly ash on slag-based engineered geopolymer composites: Multiple-scale investigations","authors":"Yiming Zhou , Mohamed Elchalakani , Mohamed Ali Sadakkathulla , Reza Hassanli , Xiao Guo , Essam Tawfik , Osama Youssf","doi":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109751","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.istruc.2025.109751","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>This study investigates the impact of varying fly ash dosages on slag-based engineered geopolymer composites (EGC). The single-fibre pull-out, single-crack tensile, and dog-bone specimen tensile tests were carried out for the multiple-scale investigations. Results indicate that increasing the fly ash dosage from 20 % to 40 % enhanced the tensile strength, compressive strength, flexural strength, and tensile strain capacities by 150 %, 32 %, 34 %, and 319 %, respectively. The maximum bridging stress increased from 1.5 MPa to 3.72 MPa as the fly ash content raised from 20 % to 40 %, resulting in a 12.6 % tensile strain capacity in EGC. However, the mechanical performance of EGC started to deteriorate when using 50 % of fly ash. This study revealed that different geopolymer products exhibited varying interfacial properties with polyethylene fibre. According to the SEM-EDS and XRD results, low-calcium phase in geopolymer matrix provide a larger real contact area compared to high-calcium phases. Additionally, chemical bonding existed as the EGC transformed from being slag-based to fly ash-based. The impact of fly ash on slag-based EGC is significant, as it changes the interfacial properties of fibre and matrix by changing the chemical and physical properties of matrix.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":48642,"journal":{"name":"Structures","volume":"80 ","pages":"Article 109751"},"PeriodicalIF":3.9,"publicationDate":"2025-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144680351","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}