High Strain-Rate Testing of Mechanical Couplers

Abstract

Criteria for designing structures to resist the effects of accidental explosions are defined by Army Technical Manual (TM) 5-1300.These structures are built using steel-reinforced concrete.The current practice of splicing the flexural reinforcing steel is to lap the steel, which often creates a congestion of the steel in floors, walls, and adjoining corners.In 1971, a limited number of types of splices were tested at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center (ERDC) (formerly Waterways Experiment Station) to determine their performance under dynamic load conditions.Since then, several types of mechanical couplers have been tested and validated in developing the strength of reinforcing steel for cyclic loading and at strain rates expected during earthquakes.However, no mechanical couplers have been shown to meet the TM 5-1300 requirements.Therefore, five types of these modern mechanical couplers were selected and tested at the high strain rates expected during structural response to blast loads.This report focuses on the performance of the mechanical couplers at high strain rates.