Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Journal of Building Engineering

journal homepage: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/jobe

Computational simulation of eccentrically loaded reinforced concrete walls

formed with modular thin-walled permanent formwork system
Kamyar Kildashti a, *, Bijan Samali a, Adnan Malik b, M. Makki Alamdari c
a
Centre for Infrastructure Engineering, School of Engineering, Western Sydney University, NSW, Australia
b
AFS Systems, Australia
c
Centre for Infrastructure Engineering and Safety, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of New South Wales, NSW, Australia

A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T

Keywords: Stay-in-place formwork (SIPF) systems represent a conventional formwork-free, corrosion-resistant substitute for
Stay-in-place formwork construction of new reinforced concrete walls. The composite of infill concrete and thin-walled fibre cement
Finite element modelling board (FCB)/steel studs SIPF consists of a core concrete, filled between two FCBs that are connected to each other
Nonlinear analysis
using steel studs, embedded to the concrete infill. Similarly, the concrete-filled Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) hybrid
Axial-flexural behaviour
system is comprised of extruded PVC interlocked encasements core-filled with concrete. These lightweight
structural SIPFs are utilised in modular construction in which the system is prefabricated in the factory, trans­
ported to the site, erected and assembled for concrete casting. Further, the SIPF-encased wall is a composite
system that facilitates taking advantage of mixed effects of reinforced concrete and SIPF. These are the major
benefits of these systems compared to conventional formwork systems. However, there is a gap in knowledge
regarding the strength and ductility measurement of SIPF-encased walls under eccentric axial loads that is
presented in this paper. A series of tests was conducted to failure on both composite walls and compared with the
reference specimens, i.e. standard walls (STWs). Substantial finite element (FE) studies considering material and
geometric nonlinearities as well as contact behaviour are also performed. After a reasonable model verification
against test results, a comprehensive parametric investigation accounting for the concrete compressive strength,
the thickness of SIPF components (i.e. steel studs, FCB, and PVC), longitudinal bar reinforcement, and axial load
ratio is performed. Further, the experimental and numerical results are used to assess the suitability of the
theoretical formulation specified in the current Australian Standard (AS3600) for the axial-flexural interaction
resistance of SIPF-encased walls. It is demonstrated that the predictions from the current design specifications are
overall conservative. Further, it is found that FCB/steel studs SIPF effectively contributes to improve curvature
ductility index and axial-flexural strength compared to STWs.

1. Introduction efficient for economical design by decreasing the concrete cross

Stay-in-place formwork (SIPF) systems are being utilised in lieu of
conventional formwork system for the construction of mid-to high-rise
buildings due to their ease of on-site handling, aesthetically pleasing
finishing appearance, resistance to environmental impacts, and
providing additional structural strength [1–10]. SIPFs can be used either
as a non-associated formwork to solely support outward pressure
developed by fresh concrete in the course of concrete pouring or as an
associated formwork to interact with hardened concrete and to confine
the core concrete in a loaded wall, thereby improving the concrete
compressive strength and ductility [2,11–14]. Associated SIPFs are
sectional area as well as reinforcing steel ratios. However, the composite
performance of SIPF and concrete section results in outward local
pressure on the SIPF encasement, which has a marked impact on the
structural behaviour of the concrete wall and needs consideration in
nonlinear analysis. The interaction between axial compression and
out-of-plane or in-plane bending moment is unavoidably introduced
while the SIPF-encased walls are subjected to eccentric gravity load or
lateral seismic/wind loads. Limited research has been undertaken on the
structural performance of SIPF-encased walls being subjected to
axial-flexural loading.
Hence, this paper intends to investigate the performance of the SIPF-

* Corresponding author.
E-mail address: k.kildashti@westernsydney.edu.au (K. Kildashti).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jobe.2020.102131
Received 23 September 2020; Received in revised form 2 December 2020; Accepted 25 December 2020
Available online 29 December 2020
2352-7102/© 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
K. Kildashti et al.
encased walls under eccentric axial load.
A diverse range of materials have been demonstrated the feasibility
on creating novel SIPFs such as fibre-reinforced polymers (FRP),
galvanised steel, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC), to name a few. Preceding
research studies have proven that the composite performance of FRP
SIPFs and concrete columns can influence the axial-flexural performance
of columns [15–20]. Despite the fact that FRP tubes represent lower
efficiency in confining concrete core compared to FRP wraps with fibres
oriented in hoop direction, FRP tubes could serve as a SIPF, core
confinement, and protective casing for concrete columns [15,21]. The
confinement effect and the flexural behaviour of FRP SIPFs were
modelled by Fam and Rizkalla [22]. Karimi et al. [23] investigated the
composite performance of a glass FRP, surrounding the steel I-section
and core-filled concrete. The glass FRP tubes in their study acted as a
SIPF, in addition to providing confinement to the concrete core. Cao
et al. [24] conducted experimental and analytical studies on the
expansive concrete-inner core steel composites, encased with FRP SIPF.
They explored how the prestressing effects could affect compressive
behaviour of the composite. Li et al. [25] conducted FE analyses to
obtain the optimal fibre direction and the efficient interfacial bonding
strength. Seismic performance of concrete columns encased with FRP
SIPFs has been studied to show ductility improvement of FRP-confined
concrete [13,26]. Zaghi et al. [27] conducted shake-table tests to fail­
ure on a large-scale model of bridge pier encased with FRP tubes as a
SIPF. They found that larger spread of plasticity, through potential
plastic hinge region for FRP-encased columns, led to a better seismic
performance compared to conventional columns.
Steel tubular encasements could serve as a composite system with
infill concrete, offering improved ductility and axial-flexural capacity as
well as permanent formwork for concrete placement [28,29]. Varma
et al. [30] conducted investigations on structural performance of
concrete-filled steel plate shear walls. They concluded that the system
can properly be utilised not only as a modularised system, but also as a
SIPF for concrete casting. Eltayeb et al. [31] utilised a double skin
profiled steel encasement as a structural SIPF as well as an exterior wall
reinforcement to eliminate using reinforcing bars for concrete place­
ment. Xiao et al. [32] investigated a concrete filled steel tubular system
for seismic design of composite structures. With the aim of controlling
concrete spalling in the potential plastic hinge regions, they concluded
that the composite system could enhance the seismic performance of
concrete columns.
The PVC SIPFs have recently been utilised as an economical and
durable permanent formwork system. Fakhrifar and Chen [33] com­
bined the effectiveness of FRP wraps to confine concrete columns
encased with PVC tubes. They concluded that FRP wraps can produce
additional confinement to the concrete core and delay outward local
buckling of the PVC tube as well as lateral dilation of the encased con­
crete. The PVC SIPFs may consist of extruded PVC interlinked panels,
acting as permanent formworks for concrete components. The PVC
panels have punched holes through the webs to facilitate the placement
of horizontal bars and for the wet concrete to flow easily between
panels, refer to Ref. [34]. The PVC-encased walls may demonstrate
increased axial-flexural capacity compared to standard walls (STWs)
due to more concrete confinement. Experiments on the structural per­
formance of PVC-encased columns loaded either concentrically or
eccentrically can be found in the literature [1–3,12,35]. In these studies,
utilisation of PVC SIPFs led to improvement in cracking strength and
ultimate bearing capacity under pure flexure. Chahrour and Soudki [36]
proposed a theoretical formulation to predict load bearing capacity of
PVC-encased columns under axial-flexural loads. Kildashti et al. [34]
conducted experimental and numerical studies to identify structural
performance of PVC-encased concrete columns under pure axial load.
Precast concrete insulated wall panels have been introduced as a
double-skin building envelope by leveraging thermal and structural ef­
ficiencies [37]. These panels can be designed as either fully composite or
non-composite walls and pros and cons associated with each
2
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
classification were discussed thoroughly [37,38]. Tomlinson et al. [39,
40] investigated the validity of a new Basalt FRP shear ties, connecting
two internal and external concrete layers. A hybrid fibre cement board
(FCB) and steel studs SIPF consists of lightweight panels created by
connecting resilient FCBs to galvanised steel stud frames using a pro­
prietary adhesive [34]. Longitudinal and transverse reinforcements can
easily be inserted into panels, being eventually core-filled with concrete.
In other words, the composite systems consist of concrete infill sand­
wiched between two FCBs that are connected to each other and to the
concrete infill using inner light gauge steel studs, refer to Ref. [34].
These panels are appropriate for construction modularisation as well,
since panels consisting of FCBs and steel studs can be prefabricated in
the factory, transported to the site, pulled together, reinforced with bars,
and core-filled with concrete. This system can also accelerate the con­
struction process by leveraging modular approach associated with pre­
fabrication of panels and reducing on-site labour activities for
assembling and dismantling formwork system. Research on
SIPF-encased concrete walls under eccentric axial loads must still be
undertaken to comprehend their behaviour and performance due to lack
of experimental and numerical investigations. Further, the interaction
between SIPFs and concrete walls has not clearly been identified to
calculate axial-flexural interaction envelop and moment-curvature
curves.
This paper presents experimental and numerical investigations on
the axial-flexural performance of PVC-encased and FCB/steel stud-
encased concrete walls, which are respectively called AFS-RW and
AFS-LW walls from this section onwards. AFS-LW represents FCB/steel
stud panel SIPFs and AFS-RW represents PVC SIPFs. A total of six wall
samples of AFS-LW walls, AFS-RW walls, and corresponding STWs,
designed as per AS3600 [41], were tested to failure to determine the
structural performance under axial-flexural loading. STWs were desig­
nated as reference walls, targeting at comparing AFS-encased wall re­
sults with conventional walls in common practice. A finite element (FE)
numerical modelling technique is employed and validated against test
data in order to predict moment-curvature curves and axial-flexural
interaction strength diagrams for AFS-LW- and AFS-RW-encased walls.
The FE model is then employed to study the influence of different pa­
rameters on the structural behaviour of AFS-encased walls.
2. Development of numerical simulation
A detailed three-dimensional FE model was established on the basis
of actual dimension and boundary conditions to predict the axial-
flexural behaviour of STW and SIPF-encased walls. The numerical FE
model was simulated and analysed using commercial ABAQUS [42]
platform, being specifically appropriate for this kind of analysis due to
the wide variety of available material constitutive laws as well as nu­
merical solution techniques.
2.1. Element characterisation
The concrete, FCB, and PVC were all modelled using eight-node
linear brick elements (C3D8R) with reduced integration formulation
and hourglass control criteria. Further, four-node doubly curved thin
shell elements (S4R) with reduced integration formulation and finite
membrane strains were employed for modelling of steel studs. The
reason why the shell elements were used to model steel studs was to
engage the stud’s flanges with FCB and concrete core. Accordingly, the
composite actions between AFS SIPF systems and concrete core were
realistically modelled. Longitudinal and transverse bars were finally
modelled using two-node linear beam elements (B31). The composite
behaviour between both AFS-LW and AFS-RW encasements and inner
concrete was simulated using the interaction algorithm, built-in ABA­
QUS. The mesh sizes of 20 mm were used for concrete, FCB, and PVC in
this study. The reason to select the same mesh density is the need to
make a compatibility between various elements to reflect the interaction
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

of each other and to resolve the convergence problem during contact

( [ ⃒ ⃒])κ.η − η2
development. Since the concrete behaviour in tension was mesh- σ c = 1 − H |εc | − ⃒εc,lim ⃒ fcm
dependent, the mesh density was selected using sensitivity analyses to 1 + (κ − 2).η
[( ) 2 ( ) ]− 1
achieve the best approximation with experimental results. [ ⃒ ⃒] 2 η 4
+ H |εc | − ⃒εc,lim ⃒ ξ− + − ξ η fcm (1)
ω ω ω
2.2. Contact algorithm
where.
A Master/Slave contact pair through “Surface-to-Surface” normal
contact with “hard contact” algorithm was defined in which the outer σ c = compression stress in (MPa)
surface of concrete acted as a Master Surface and inner surface of both η = εc /εc1
FCB and PVC encasement worked as a Slave Surface. Due to high un­ κ = Eci /Ec1
certainty level of adhesion and friction between either FCB or PVC and ω = εc,lim /εc1 = 0.5(0.5κ + 1) + [0.25(0.5κ + 1)2 − 0.5]1/2
concrete core, the tangential contact and bonding was conservatively ξ = 4[ω2 (κ − 2) + 2ω − κ]/[ω(κ − 2) + 1]2
ignored. As the reinforcing steels, steel studs, and PVC webs were εc1 = strain at maximum compressive stress
bonded to concrete firmly, those elements were embedded into the
Eci = tangent modulus = 104 fcm 1/3 in (MPa)
corresponding solid elements. The connection between steel studs and
fcm = characteristic compressive strength
FCBs was assumed to be fully bonded and therefore, a tie constraint was
Ec1 = secant modulus from the origin to the peak compressive stress
defined through Master/Slave interaction behaviour. Both steel stud and
H = Heaviside function
PVC webs were eventually linked to concrete using embedded constraint
as well.
The concrete stress-strain relation in uniaxial tension consists of a
linear phase up to tensile strength, followed by a nonlinear strain soft­
2.3. Material models
ening phase that depends on the specimen geometry [45,47], see Fig. 1
(a). The stress-crack opening relation can be expressed as
Various material constitutive laws relevant to plasticity theory were
{[ ( )3 ] (
undertaken to capture nonlinear behaviour. cw
So-called “Concrete Damaged Plasticity” constitutive law was σ ct (w) = 1 + 1 exp
wc
employed for the modelling of both concrete and FCB materials. This c2 w
)
w( )
}
model is a complex nonlinear material behaviour of concrete [43,44], − − 1 + c1 3 exp(− c2 ) fctm c1 = 3, c2 = 6.93 (2)
wc wc
built-in ABAQUS. The “Concrete Damaged Plasticity” model requires the
following materials to be fully established (1) parameters ψ (the dilation where.
angle), ε (the flow potential eccentricity), σb0 /σ c0 (the ratio of initial
equibiaxial compressive yield stress to initial uniaxial compressive yield σ ct = tensile stress in (MPa)
stress), Kc (the ratio of the second stress invariant on the tensile meridian w = lt εck
ct = lt (εct − σ ct /Eci ) = crack opening in (mm)
to that of the compressive meridian), (2) uniaxial stress-strain behaviour wc = 5GF /fctm = crack opening when σct = 0 in (mm)
of concrete-like material in tension and compression, and (3) damage
GF = 0.073fcm 0.18 = fracture energy in (N/mm)
variable evolution in compression, dc , and in tension, dt [45].
The uniaxial concrete model in this study was assumed to be un­ fctm = 0.3fcm 2/3 = tensile strength in (MPa)
confined concrete and the confining pressure applied to the concrete εct = tensile strain
core was obtained with consideration of triaxial stresses across all sec­ lt = characteristic length in FE modelling
tions as well as the efficiency of reinforcing steels and AFS encasements εck
ct = cracking strain
were examined. The ascending and descending branch of the uniaxial
concrete stress-strain curves in compression can be described as [46] (as For the FCB material, the compression behaviour was assumed to be
shown in Fig. 1(a)) elastic up to ultimate strength, accompanied with linear softening
behaviour while in tension multi-linear plastic behaviour was chosen,
see Fig. 1(b).
The “Crushable Foam” constitutive law with volume hardening,

Fig. 1. (a) Uniaxial concrete stress-strain curve (b) uniaxial stress-strain curve for FCB (εcy , εty , and E0 are, respectively, FCB yielding compressive, tensile
strain, and elastic modulus).

3
K. Kildashti et al.
built-in ABAQUS material model library was employed to simulate PVC
encasements [48]. Linear elastic material parameters, i.e. modulus of
elasticity and Poisson’s ratio, ν, must be defined as elastic input pa­
rameters. By knowing k = σ 0c /p0c , kt = pt /p0c , and σ0c , the “Crushable
Foam” model was fully established, in which, σ 0c is the initial yield stress
in hydrostatic compression, p0c is the initial value of yield stress in hy­
drostatic compression, and pt is the yield strength in hydrostatic tension.
Steel studs and reinforcing bars were modelled using Von Mises yield
criterion, considering bilinear kinematic behaviour for uniaxial tensile
behaviour.
3. Specimen design and material properties
The experimental program involved testing a total of six reinforced
concrete samples, of which two AFS-LW and two AFS-RW SIPFs were
used to cast AFS-encased concrete walls and the other two STWs were
cast as references, representing conventional walls.
All experimental tests were undertaken to obtain axial-flexural ca­
pacity of AFS-encased walls subjected to eccentric axial loading. At­
tempts were made to compare the axial-flexural behaviour of AFS-
encased walls to the conventional counterpart with the same cross-
sectional dimensions, concrete strength, and reinforcing steel rebar.
Details of the samples tested in the current study are depicted in Fig. 2.
One batch of concrete was casted for samples and the compressive
strength of 25 MPa was determined by uniaxial compressive tests on
nine cylinders. Plain bars were chosen for horizontal reinforcing steels,
relevant to Class 250 N as per AS4671 [49] and deformed bars classified
as Class 500 N, were chosen for longitudinal reinforcement. The mate­
rial properties of steel studs used in the present study were relevant to
G300 in accordance with AS4600 [50]. Mechanical properties of FCB
encasements, whose nominal thickness is 6 mm, was obtained according
Fig. 2. Cross-sectional view of AFS LW, AFS RW, and STW specimens.
4
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
the procedure in AS2908.2 [51], refer to Ref. [34] for more details.
Further, compressive and tensile strength of PVC encasements were 60
Mpa and 35 MPa, obtained in accordance with specification of ASTM
D695-15 [52] and ASTM D638-14 [53]. For AFS-LW and AFS-RW, punch
outs through stud webs were vertically positioned at 200 mm and 240
mm, respectively, in order to place transverse U-bars. The detailing of
reinforcement combined with steel stud (or cross PVC ribs) worked to
confine concrete core. In other words, for AFS-encased walls under
concentric or eccentric loads, outward concrete dilation tended to
impose pressure on U-bars, fitted in the steel stud punched holes. The
steel studs were positioned in a way that their webs needed to support
reaction forces. Steel studs herein acted similar to crossties in standard
walls and partially restrained longitudinal reinforcement against buck­
ling and concrete core against spalling off.
4. Experiment setup and instrumentation
The test facility for the compressive test was a 10,000-kN-capacity
Hong Shan machine, at the Laboratory of the Centre for Infrastructure
Engineering at Western Sydney University, Australia. The loading rate
was 1.4 mm/min with stroke control. The corbel-like heads were cast at
both ends of each sample in order to apply eccentric axial load to the
walls and avoid forming of premature end failures. Further, the loading
heads consisted of cast-in ferrules to secure the specimens over the
course of axial-flexural tests, using countersunk socket head cap screws,
clamping machine adaptor plate to the corbels, as shown in Fig. 3. In
order to guarantee uniform distribution of applied load, the end faces of
all samples were grinded and levelled using high-strength plaster.
All AFS-encased walls as well as STWs were cast as 1.8 m tall with
two end corbel-like connections, 0.55 m each, and the total wall height
is 2.9 m. Two eccentricities of 75 mm and 125 mm were adopted for
axial-flexural loading tests. All test samples are labelled in Table 1.
K. Kildashti et al.
Fig. 3. (a) Corbel-like connection detail (b) the arrangement of bolts.
Table 1
Specimen description for test program.
Specimen Test name Sample description
No.
1 STW256D STW relevant to AFS-RW256D-encased wall;
eccentricity = 75 mm
2 AFS-LW1 AFS-LW200D-encased wall; eccentricity = 75 mm
3 AFS-RW1 AFS-RW256D-encased wall; eccentricity = 75 mm
4 STW200D STW relevant to AFS-LW200D-encased wall;
eccentricity = 125 mm
5 AFS-RW2 AFS-RW256D-encased wall; eccentricity = 125 mm
6 AFS-LW2 AFS-LW200D-encased wall; eccentricity = 125 mm
Different monitoring systems were used to measure the displacements
and strains of the walls. Six strain gauges, SG1-6, were glued to the wall
at one-quarter, mid- and three-quarter height (three on each wider side
of the wall), as shown in Fig. 4, to capture longitudinal strains. Four
linear variable differential transducers (LVDTs) were glued to each end
side of the wall, LP-V1-4 in Fig. 4, to measure the axial shortening. To
measure the lateral deflection of the walls, three LVDTs were attached to
both ends and mid-height, LP-H2-4 in Fig. 4. Further, two LVDTs and LP-
H1&5 were installed in the vicinity of the loading head. Once the
specimen was locked in the testing rig and the instrumentation was
installed in place and the initial calibration was done, the axial-flexural
testing then started. A displacement-controlled mode utilising a servo-
hydraulic actuator was setup for the testing machine. A load cell,
attached to the machine crosshead, was used to measure compressive
loads. A photo of the typical compression testing is shown in Fig. 5.
5. Experimental results and discussion
The failure of STWs was triggered by sudden concrete cover spalling,
followed by outward buckling of longitudinal reinforcement and failure
of fitments; see Fig. 6. The failure was very sudden and explosive and
occurred near the mid-height. The failure of the AFS-LW-encased walls
was initiated by the appearance of hairline cracks on FCB, followed by a
FCB wrinkles once the load approached the capping point. The rupture
of the FCB and separation between concrete and FCB revealed excessive
concrete outward expansion; see Fig. 7. Little warning in the way of
5
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
sound was given before the maximum load was reached. The failure of
AFS-RW-encased walls was initiated by the ripples formation on the PVC
encasement and subsequently separation between concrete and the PVC
layers occurred once the abrupt decrease in the load was observed; see
Fig. 8.
5.1. AFS-LW- and AFS-RW-encased wall structural behaviour
The capping axial load and corresponding axial shortenings and
lateral displacements were measured during the eccentric axial load
tests and the results are reported in Table 2. Both axial ductility factor
and curvature ductility factor were measured using the procedure re­
ported in Ref. [54], given by:
μax. =
δ0.85
(3)
δy
κ0.85
μcur. = (4)
κy
where δ0.85 and κ0.85 , respectively, represent the axial shortening and
curvature of the wall when the axial load or flexural moment reduce to
85% of their ultimate axial capacity or moment capacity in the post
capping range of load-displacement curve.
As reported in Table 2, the AFS-LW2 and the corresponding
STW200D show capping loads of 700 kN and 596 kN, respectively,
indicating that increase in the maximum axial load of 17% relative to the
STW is achieved for the AFS-LW-encased wall. This increase in the level
of axial strength is obtained due to the composite performance between
the AFS-LW encasement and the inner concrete core. On the other hand,
the AFS-RW1 axial capacity is 1928 kN, which roughly equals to 1950
kN obtained from the STW256D counterpart. The reason for the minimal
change in the axial capacity of AFS-RW is that the PVC encasement
display less flexural stiffness than concrete core in order to restrain
outward concrete expansion. In Table 2, the ductility factor of AFS-LW2
shows 8% improvement compared to that of STW200D. Conversely,
there is a minimal change in the ductility factor once comparison is
made between AFS-RW1 and STW256D. Test results obtained for AFS-
LW1 and AFS-RW2 are used to calibrate FE model in the next section.
Fig. 9 illustrates load-displacement curves for STWs and AFS-encased
K. Kildashti et al.
Fig. 4. Experimental test instrumentation; LPh: transducers in horizontal di­
rection, LPv: transducers in vertical direction, SG: strain gauges.
walls. The vertical axis represents the axial load and the horizontal axis
represents axial shortening, measured by the following formula
avg(LP − V1, LP − V2) − avg(LP − V3, LP − V4). The rising branch of
the load-displacement curve crosses capping point, and then descending
branch starts with significant displacement. As expected, the higher the
axial load eccentricity, the lower the resulting axial stiffness will be, as
the presence of flexural moments reduces the axial stiffness. As dis­
cussed previously, the effects of the AFS-LW encasement are more pro­
nounced than the AFS-RW counterpart to improve wall axial capacity.
The axial load-axial strain relationship of the tested specimens obtained
from the average values of strain gauge readings at mid-height (see
SG3,4 in Fig. 4) are presented and compared in Fig. 10. From this figure,
it can be seen that the axial strain obtained from AFS-LW2 generally
shows lower values than STW200D counterpart when comparison is
made at the same level of axial load. This result again proves the com­
posite contribution of AFS-LW encasement to concrete core confine­
ment. Conversely, the AFS-RW encasement contribution to core
confinement is minimal as the axial strain obtained from AFS-RW1
shows close values to those obtained form STW256D for the entire
range of axial load; as shown in Fig. 10(b).
6
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
6. Interpretation of numerical results in comparison with test
results
In this section, FE numerical analysis results are interpreted and
compared with experimental results. Several characterisation tests were
conducted in order to calibrate specific parameters in material models,
for details refer to Ref. [34]. In Table 3, the parameters needed to
develop the material model for concrete is listed.
Experimental characterisation tests were undertaken to calibrate
material models for FCB and PVC, discussed in detail elsewhere [34].
The selected parameters are reported in Table 4 and Table 5.
Modulus of elasticity and Poisson’s ratio for all steel materials were
assumed to be 200 GPa and 0.3, respectively. Yield stress for deformed
bars, plain bars, and steel studs were respectively considered as 550
MPa, 400 MPa, and 300 MPa, refer to Ref. [34] for more details.
The established FE model was assumed to have boundary conditions
as shown in Fig. 4, in which a reference point with a predefined ec­
centricity was assigned to top surface of the model and coupled with the
degrees of freedom of all nodes on the top face. An eccentric compres­
sion load was applied by controlling the vertical displacement of the
reference point by adopting implicit solver provided in ABAQUS.
In Fig. 11 (a) and (b), the contour of concrete damage in compression
at peak axial load is illustrated for STW200D and the corresponding wall
encased with AFS-LW. As seen, the penetration of damage in the AFS-
LW-encased wall implies the spread of plasticity over the longer
portion of the wall. A larger damaged region results in a smaller local
damage magnitude on concrete region. As seen in Fig. 11 (a) and (b), in
the AFS-LW-encased wall the maximum damage value in compression is
0.55 compared to that of 0.88 for STW200D. For the AFS-RW-encased
wall and the STW256D, as shown in Fig. 11 (c) and (d), the efficiency
of the PVC encasement in well distribution of concrete damage in
compression is still obvious, although this contribution is minimal. In
Fig. 12 (a) and (b), the plastic strain contours for FCB and steel studs
show the composite actions between AFS-LW SIPF and the concrete core.
As seen, the maximum plastic strain is localised at both boundary sides
of FCB, demonstrating the more likelihood of separation between con­
crete and AFS-LW encasement at FCB side regions. Von Mises stress
contour on PVC encasement is shown in Fig. 12 (c). The maximum value
of stress close to both sides of PVC coincides with the ripples occurred in
Fig. 8. However, the magnitude of stresses is much lower than strength
values listed in Table 5, since the modulus of elasticity of the PVC
encasement is approximately 1/15 of that of concrete. Therefore, the
load carried by PVC is substantially less than that by the concrete, which
makes the PVC experienced smaller premature failure due to its lower
modulus.
The FE model developed was validated by comparing the load-
displacement curves with the experimentally measured data in Fig. 9
(a) and (b). Two different axial load eccentricities were used as discussed
previously. As seen in Fig. 9(a), the axial capacity corresponding to AFS-
LW and STW200D obtained from FE analysis are generally in good
agreement with experimental results for both 75 mm and 125 mm axial
load eccentricities in terms of the peak load and the ductility level.
Similarly, there is a good correlation between load-displacement curves
predicted from FE and experimental results for AFS-RW and the corre­
sponding STWs for both eccentricities. The ultimate axial capacity of
AFS-RW wall and the corresponding STW256D for 75 mm and 125 mm
load eccentricity is similarly in good correlation.
7. Parametric investigation
The FE numerical models were established to determine the axial-
flexural interaction diagrams and moment-curvature curves of AFS-
encased walls with various concrete strength, steel stud thickness, FCB
thickness, PVC thickness, reinforcement ratios, and axial load ratios.
Details of the reference walls were relevant to AFS-LW and AFS-RW
walls, depicted in Fig. 2, except that the transverse reinforcements
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Fig. 5. Testing machine used in the current study (a) an AFS-LW wall locked in testing rig (b) machine platen to impose eccentric load.

Fig. 6. Failure modes of STW (a) concrete crushing near mid-height (b) concrete cover sheared off.

changed from R10 to N12, while the vertical spacing was unchanged.
Concrete compressive strength was assumed to be 32 MPa and short
walls were considered, 1.2 m in height, to avoid formation of secondary
moment due to slenderness effects. Axial-flexural interaction envelops
were developed to numerically investigate the axial load and flexural
moment capacity of the AFS-encased walls. Any point on the interaction
diagrams may characterise a condition of a wall under a concentric load,
an eccentric load, or a pure bending. For the sake of comparison, the
procedure set out by AS3600 for constructing the interaction diagrams
for STWs was taken into account as well. In the FE numerical model, for
a given AFS-encased wall, the interaction diagram was constructed by
selecting successive choices of axial load eccentricities. For each axial
load eccentricity, FE analysis was incrementally conducted, and a
database of steel stresses and concrete strains was created. For each
selected eccentricity value, the steel stresses (i.e. for both compression
and tension steel bars) and concrete strains at the cross-sectional
outermost fibres were obtained from the model output database for
each FE analysis increment. Constraint values for steel bars yield stress

7
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Fig. 7. Failure modes of AFS-LW wall (a) FCB failure initiation near mid-height (b) FCB wrinkling near corbel-like connection.

Fig. 8. Failure modes of AFS-RW wall (a) PVC ripples (b) concrete crushing at the point of PVC failure.

in tension and compression (i.e. fy = 500 MPa) and ultimate crushing
strain for concrete (i.e. εu = 0.003) in accordance with requirements of
AS3600 was checked simultaneously. The nominal axial force and the
nominal flexural moment, relevant to the selected axial load eccentric­
ities can then be calculated at the constraint point, and thus a single
point on the strength interaction diagram was established. The calcu­
lations were then repeated for successive choices of axial force
eccentricities to establish the curve defining the strength limit. As dis­
cussed in Ref. [55], the analysis to develop the interaction diagram of
the conventional walls was carried out based on principles of equilib­
rium and compatibility in accordance with AS3600. It is worthwhile
noting that all flexural moments calculated to construct interaction di­
agrams were around 3-3 axis as depicted in Fig. 2. Further, the
AFS-encased concrete walls were confined with AFS SIPFs, and the

8
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Table 2
AFS-encased wall and STW test results.
Specimen Capping load (kN) At capping load δy (mm) δ0.85 (mm) μax.
Axial shortening (mm) Mid-height lateral displacement (mm)

STW256D 1950 5.49 14.08 5.27 5.81 1.10

AFS-LW1 1084 6.15 32.77 3.92 8.17 2.08
AFS-RW1 1928 5.75 21.51 5.13 5.75 1.12
STW200D 596 11.09 44.81 8.41 13.35 1.59
AFS-RW2 1186 9.09 34.81 6.78 10.14 1.50
AFS-LW2 700 11.30 44.03 7.64 13.05 1.71

Fig. 9. Load-displacement curves for walls under concentric load and comparison with FE results (STW200D*-FE and STW256D*-FE are respectively corresponding
to FE results of STWs with 75 mm and 125 mm load eccentricities).

Fig. 10. Comparison of axial load versus axial strain relationships obtained from the strain gauge readings at mid-height.

Table 3
Parameters used to calibrate “Concrete Damaged Plasticity” model for concrete material.
ψ ε σb0 / Kc ν
σc0 Eci (MPa) fcm (MPa) εc1 (%) εc,lim (%) fctm (MPa) GF (N/mm) wc (mm)
Ec1 (MPa) lt (mm)

30◦ 0.1 1.16 2/3 29,180 11,905 0.2 25 0.21 0.41 2.6 0.13 0.25 20

Table 4
Parameters used to calibrate “Concrete Damaged Plasticity” model for FCB material.
ψ ε σb0 /σc0 Kc ν
E0 (MPa) σcu (MPa) εcu (%) εcr (%) σty (MPa) σtu (MPa) εtu (%) εtr (%)
′ ′

30◦ 0.1 1.16 2/3 5000 0.2 52 – 1.0 4.95 5.95 0.5 1.5

9
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Table 5 confining pressure applied to the concrete wall was explicitly obtained
Model parameters to construct “Crushable Foam” model. with consideration of triaxial stresses across all sections.
E0 (MPa) ν k kt σ0c (MPa)

1500 0.35 0.8 0.4 50

7.1. Influence of concrete strength

The FE numerical analyses on AFS-encased walls were conducted by

assuming concrete with various compressive strengths to evaluate the
impacts of concrete strength on their axial-flexural interaction diagrams
as well as moment-curvature curves. The AFS-encased walls were
created of concrete with strengths ranging from 20 MPa to 50 MPa,

Fig. 11. Contour of damage variable in compression at peak load.

Fig. 12. (a) Equivalent plastic strain contour for FCB at peak load (b) Equivalent plastic strain contour for steel studs at peak load (c) Von Mises stress contour for
PVC at peak load.

10
K. Kildashti et al.
while the other parameters were unchanged. Uniaxial concrete stress-
strain curves in compression and tension calculated by Eqs. (1) and (2).
Fig. 13 shows the complete axial-flexural interaction curves for AFS-
LW-, AFS-RW-encased walls, STW200D, and STW256D obtained from
FE analyses with various concrete strengths. For the sake of comparison,
the interaction curves obtained from analytical formulations in accor­
dance with AS3600 are illustrated as well. From Fig. 13, STW axial-
flexural interaction curves obtained from FE analyses expectedly show
larger values compared to those obtained from AS3600, since the
analytical formulation of the AS3600 has some degree of design con­
servation. Further, for the entire range of concrete strength, the locus of
interaction points of AFS-LW-encased walls lies outside the interaction
curve obtained from STW200D. In other words, AFS-LW-encased walls
show higher axial-flexural capacity compared to that of the STW200D.
On the other hand, there are minimal changes in axial-flexural capacities
of AFS-RW-encased walls compared to STW256D.
In Fig. 14, the force point traces for four specimens of AFS-LW and
AFS-RW along with the corresponding interaction curves are plotted. As
seen, for both AFS-LW and AFS-RW samples with 75 mm of axial load
eccentricities, the load point traces cross the interaction curves. Effects
of geometric nonlinearities are obvious as a deviation from straight OA
line to the curved OB line. The magnification of bending moments as a
result of slenderness effects is also shown in Fig. 14. The force point
traces for the two other samples of AFS-LW and AFS-RW samples do not
cross the interaction curves, indicating failure due to P-delta effects
prior to reaching axial-flexural strength.
In order to measure the efficiency of AFS-LW-encased walls with
respect to variation in concrete strength, a reserved capacity ratio (RCR)
is defined. Let’s assume the interaction curves of both the AFS-LW-
encased wall and the STW200D for concrete strength of 20 MPa, are
shown in Fig. 15, in which the vertical axis is normalised to ultimate
axial load, N0− 20 , and horizontal axis is normalised to balanced bending
moment, Mb− 20 (in order to make a consistent comparison with AS3600
Standard interaction curve diagrams, the balanced points are associated
with simultaneous concrete crushing (strain of 0.003) and tensile steel
rebar yielding). The RCR is achieved by plotting an arbitrary point L on
the STW200D interaction curve and determining the location of point C
on AFS-LW interaction curve. Point C is defined as the point where the
line OL (if extended outwards) will intersect AFS-LW interaction curve.
This point is determined by a two-dimensional polynomial interpolation
between the points that define the interaction curve. The RCR is the ratio
of OC/OL.
In Fig. 16, variation in RCR with respect to N/N0− 20 is shown. As
shown, by increasing the concrete strength, the locus of RCR points lies
further below the curve pertinent to fcm = 20 MPa. In other words, the
efficiency of AFS-LW SIPF is deteriorated once higher concrete strength
is taken into account.
The moment-curvature curves simulated under constant compressive
force, Nu = 2000kN for AFS-LW walls and STW200D as well as Nu =
3000kN for AFS-RW and STW256D, are illustrated in Fig. 17. Both
compressive axial forces were within compression-controlled part of the
interaction diagram. As seen in Fig. 17(a) and (b), the descending
branch of moment curvature curves after capping point for STWs is
steeper than those for AFS-LW walls. However, for AFS-RW walls and
the corresponding STWs this change is minimal. In Table 6, the moment
capacity and curvature ductility factor for various walls are listed. By
varying the concrete strength from 20 MPa to 50 MPa, the AFS-LW wall
bending strength improves from 50% to 23% compared to the STW.
Even though the bending strength enhancement is observed for entire
range of concrete strength, there are less improvements if a higher
strength concrete is considered. From curvature ductility standpoint, the
variation in concrete strength from 20 MPa to 50 MPa demonstrates
enhancement in ductility curvature capacity from 38% to 9%. In other
words, for higher strength concrete the AFS-LW SIPF is less efficient in
improving curvature ductility factor. As seen in Fig. 17(c) and (d), the
11
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
AFS-RW walls exhibit minimal improvement for both bending strength
and curvature ductility factor.
7.2. nfluence of AFS-LW formwork thickness
The thickness of steel studs used in AFS-LW SIPF system were varied
from 0.55 mm to 1.15 mm, further the single stud was replaced with
back-to-back double studs with the wall thickness of 1.15 mm, and the
other parameters were unchanged. Fig. 18 (a) shows axial-flexural
interaction diagrams of the AFS-LW walls having various steel stud
wall thickness. It is concluded that the locus of interaction points for
AFS-LW walls with stud thickness of 1.15 mm lies outside the interaction
curve generated for that with thickness of 0.55 mm. Similarly, the AFS-
LW with double back-to-back studs outperforms the other two coun­
terparts. Further, the effect of increasing wall thickness shows more
noticeable impact on improving pure flexural moments and balanced
moments than pure axial loads. The moment-curvature curves for AFS-
LW walls with various wall thickness under a constant load of 2000
kN are depicted in Fig. 18 (b). As seen, the bending capacity of AFS-LW
walls with a higher stud wall thickness is improved. By replacing single
studs with thickness of 0.55 mm to double studs with thickness of 1.15
mm the bending capacity of the AFS-LW wall increases by 28%. Further,
using studs with a higher thickness in AFS-LW walls improves their
curvature ductility. The curvature ductility factor for both AFS-LW walls
with single stud and double stud with thickness of 1.15 mm is 4.35,
while this value is 4.09 for AFS-LW with stud thickness of 0.55. This is
because increasing the wall thickness of steel studs enhances the com­
posite action between AFS-LW SIPF and concrete core.
The effect of FCB thickness of the AFS-LW encasements on the
structural performance of walls were explored by using the FE numerical
model. The thickness of the reference AFS-LW wall was altered from 6
mm to 12 mm and 24 mm while the other parameters were kept con­
stant. Increasing the FCB thickness moderately improves both the pure
axial load and pure flexural moment of the AFS-LW walls as can be
observed through strength interaction envelop diagrams in Fig. 19 (a).
The FCB thickness increase has the most pronounced influence on
balanced flexural moment than pure flexural moment or axial load.
Changing the FCB thickness from 6 mm to 24 mm increases the balanced
flexural moment by 39%. The moment curvature diagram under con­
stant axial load of 2000 kN is shown in Fig. 19(b). From the figure, there
is remarkable improvement in bending moment capacity of AFS-LW
walls with FCB thickness of 24 mm compared to 6 mm. Further, the
curvature ductility factor of AFS-LW wall with FCB thickness of 24 mm
shows 14% increase compared to FCB with thickness of 6 mm.
7.3. Influence of AFS-RW formwork thickness
The amount to which the AFS-RW wall axial-flexural interaction
diagrams and moment-curvature curves was likely to be affected were
investigated by changing PVC encasement thickness from 3 mm to 6 mm
and 12 mm. Fig. 20 (a) depicts the axial-flexural envelops of AFS-RW
walls, which are plotted by illustrating the effect of the PVC encase­
ment thickness. It is confirmed that the use of PVC with greater thickness
makes a minimal change in the pure axial load and flexural moments of
AFS-RW walls. The predicted moment-curvature relations of AFS-RW
walls subjected to axial load of 3000 kN are shown in Fig. 20 (b). As
seen, by altering the PVC thickness from 3 mm to 6 mm and then 12 mm,
the AFS-RW wall capping flexural moment increases by 2% and 6%,
respectively. Further, the computed AFS-RW wall curvature ductility
factors with PVC thickness of 3 mm, 6 mm, and 12 mm are 2.86, 2.88,
and 3.07, respectively.
7.4. Influence of longitudinal bar reinforcement ratio
The sensitivities of moment-curvature diagram of AFS-LW and AFS-
RW walls to longitudinal bar reinforcement ratios were studied by
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Fig. 13. Effects of concrete strength on the axial-flexural strength diagram of AFS-encased walls.

12
K. Kildashti et al.
Fig. 14. Second-order effects due to wall slenderness.
Fig. 15. RCR definition.
Fig. 16. RCR comparison for various concrete strength.
varying ρ from 1% to 3%, assuming constant axial load of 2000 kN and
3000 kN for AFS-LW and AFS-RW walls, respectively. As seen in Fig. 21
(a), the flexural capacity of STW200D varied from 108 to 120 kN-m by
changing ρ from 1.8% to 2.8%. Similar comparison for AFS-LW walls
demonstrates the improvement in flexural capacity from 142 kN-m to
13
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
157 kN-m. The percentage of improvement for both reinforcement ratios
is around 10%. Curvature ductility ratios of AFS-LW walls improved by
19% compared to STW200D for ρ = 2.8%. As seen in Fig. 21 (b), the
enhancement in flexural moment and curvature ductility of AFS-RW
walls compared to STW256D is minimal by changing ρ from 1.3% to
3.0%.
7.5. Influence of axial load ratio
The impact of the axial load ratio (Nu /Nn0 ), Nn0 being the wall ca­
pacity under concentric axial load, on the variation of moment-
curvature behaviour of AFS-LW and AFS-RW walls as well as STWs
under eccentric axial loads was explored by considering the axial load
ratios ranging from 0.15 to 0.85. The calculated moment-curvature
behaviour is shown in Fig. 22. As seen, the axial load ratio produces
considerable influence on moment-curvature behaviour in terms of both
peak moment magnitude and curvature ductility. For AFS-LW walls,
when increasing Nu /Nn0 ratio from 0.15 to 0.30, 0.50, and 0.85, the
ultimate moment capacity changes from 133 kN-m to 143 kN-m, 137
kN-m, and 63 kN-m, respectively, which is relevant to improvement in
moment capacity compared to that of STW200D from 29%, to 32%,
35%, and 99%. However, AFS-RW walls demonstrate only 3%
improvement in moment capacity compared to STW256D for the entire
range of considered Nu /Nn0 . From curvature ductility standpoint, by
increasing the Nu /Nn0 , the efficiency of AFS SIPFs in improving ductility
ratio is deteriorated. Changing the Nu /Nn0 from 0.15 to 0.85 decreases
the curvature ductility ratio from 6.53 to 2.76 for AFS-LW walls and
from 3.96 to 2.32 for STW200D.
8. Conclusions
In this paper, the structural performance of concrete walls encased
with two SIPFs, AFS-LW and AFS-RW, with the use of reduced rein­
forcing steel tie complexity compared to STWs were addressed under
eccentric axial load using experimental laboratory tests and numerical
FE analysis. Further, the composite behaviour of SIPF encasements and
concrete core were identified. AFS-LW consisted of two FCBs that were
connected to each other using light gauge steel studs, while AFS-RW was
comprised of interconnected PVC enclosures that were filled with
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Fig. 17. Effects of concrete strength on moment-curvature curves.

Table 6
Ultimate bending moment and curvature ductility factor for various walls.
Group fcm (MPa) Ultimate bending moment (kN) κy (m− 1) κ0.85 (m− 1) μcur.

AFS STW %var. AFS STW AFS STW AFS STW %var.

200D 20 106 71 50 0.012 0.010 0.069 0.043 4.38 3.18 38

200D 25 123 88 40 0.012 0.010 0.068 0.047 4.16 3.39 23
200D 32 142 108 31 0.013 0.011 0.068 0.051 4.02 3.48 16
200D 40 161 127 27 0.013 0.012 0.070 0.055 3.93 3.58 10
200D 50 179 146 23 0.014 0.013 0.073 0.059 3.84 3.52 9
256D 20 106 102 4 0.009 0.008 0.024 0.022 2.79 2.66 5
256D 25 150 146 3 0.010 0.010 0.027 0.026 2.67 2.66 4
256D 32 196 192 2 0.011 0.011 0.031 0.029 2.86 2.78 3
256D 40 237 232 2 0.012 0.011 0.035 0.034 2.98 2.98 0
256D 50 279 274 2 0.013 0.013 0.039 0.038 3.05 3.05 0

Fig. 18. Effects of steel studs wall thickness on axial-flexural response of AFS-LW (a) axial-flexural interaction diagram (b) moment-curvature curve.

concrete. Both SIPFs were prefabricated offsite and shipped to the site ABAQUS platform was employed for numerical FE analysis and various
and well-suited for modular construction. material constitutive laws along with built-in contact algorithms were
Failure mechanisms in the course of experimental lab tests on AFS- validated against experimental results to capture plausible failure
enclosed walls and the corresponding STWs were clearly identified. mechanisms as well as the rational composite actions between AFS

14
K. Kildashti et al. Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131

Fig. 19. Effects of FCB thickness on axial-flexural behaviour of AFS-LW walls (a) axial-flexural interaction diagram (b) moment-curvature curve.

Fig. 20. Effects of PVC encasement thickness on axial-flexural behaviour of AFS-RW walls (a) axial-flexural interaction diagram (b) moment-curvature curve.

Fig. 21. Effects of longitudinal bar reinforcement ratios on axial-flexural interaction envelop.

encasements and concrete walls. Good correlations between FE pre­
dictions and experimental results were obtained. The FE models were
then employed to carry out a parametric study on axial-flexural response
of AFS-enclosed walls considering various design geometric and mate­
rial parameters.
Following conclusions are drawn:
1 STWs subjected to eccentric axial load failed by abrupt concrete
cover spalling, followed by noticeable outward buckling of longitu­
dinal bars and rupture of fitments. The failure was very explosive and
commenced near the wall mid-height.
2 The failure of AFS-LW walls were triggered by appearance of surface
cracks on FCB and tracked by FCB folding at the point of capping
load. The separation between concrete and FCB revealed excessive
sandwiched-concrete dilation. The formation of ripples on the sur­
face of PVC encasement for AFS-RW walls, was indicative of concrete
expansion and the initiation of failure. Further, the separation be­
tween PVC enclosure and concrete surface occurred once sudden
drop in axial load was observed. The axial load obtained from the
AFS-LW wall revealed 17% improvement compared to that of
STW200D due to composite contribution of SIPF. However, for the
AFS-RW wall, this improvement was minimal.

15
K. Kildashti et al.
Fig. 22. Effects of axial load ratios on moment-curvature behaviour.
3 The locus of axial-flexural interaction points obtained from AFS-LW-
encased walls lies outside the interaction curve relevant to
STW200D. Therefore, AFS-LW walls revealed higher axial-flexural
capacity compared to that of STW200D for the entire range of con­
crete strength. The AFS-LW encasement created more noticeable
improvement in axial-flexural capacity of walls compared to the AFS-
RW SIPF. In other words, the composite actions between concrete
core and AFS-LW was more efficient than the other counterpart.
4 Even though the ultimate moment capacity of AFS-LW walls appre­
ciably enhanced in comparison with those of STW200D counterparts
for entire range of concrete strength, the efficiency of AFS-LW SIPFs
in the improvement of ultimate moment was in inverse proportion to
concrete strength. The same conclusions were made for curvature
ductility ratios. On the hand, there were minimal variations in both
ultimate moment and curvature ductility ratio of AFS-RW walls
compared to STW256D for the entire range of concrete strength.
5 Numerical results demonstrated that using steel studs and FCB with
higher wall thickness in AFS-LW walls noticeably enhanced bending
resistance and curvature ductility factor. On the other hand, for AFS-
RW walls, increasing PVC wall thickness slightly improved the
bending capacity and ductility factor.
6 Expectedly, numerical FE results proved that higher axial load de­
mand to capacity ratios resulted in more brittleness of both STWs and
AFS-encased walls. However, the curvature ductility degradation
due to axial loads was alleviated in AFS-LW walls compared to
STW200D as a result of composite actions between concrete core and
SIPF. On the other hand, this alleviation was minimal once the
comparisons were made between AFS-RW walls and STW256D.
To maximise AFS-enclosed walls strength and stiffness, they should
be designed with high thickness in steel studs, FCB, and PVC as far as
practicable in terms of on-site handling and construction considerations
so that the AFS encasement effectively interacts with the concrete core.
16
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
Author Statement
Kamyar Kildashti: Conceptualization, Methodology, Software, Vali­
dation, Formal analysis, Writing – original draft. Bijan Samali: Writing –
review & editing, Supervision. Adnan Malik: Resources. M. Makki
Alamdari: Writing – review & editing
Declaration of competing interest
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial
interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence
the work reported in this paper.
Acknowledgements
The financial support provided by Nonocomm Australian Research
Council Research Hub (Grant no IH150100006) and CSR Building
Products Limited to perform the experiments and numerical simulations
in this paper is gratefully acknowledged.
References
[1] A.H. Chahrour, K.A. Soudki, J. Straube, RBS polymer encased concrete wall part I:
experimental study and theoretical provisions for flexure and shear, Construct.
Build. Mater. 19 (2005) 550–563.
[2] N. Wahab, K.A. Soudki, Flexural behavior of PVC stay-in-place formed RC walls,
Construct. Build. Mater. 48 (2013) 830–839.
[3] A.A. Havez, N. Wahab, A. Al-Mayah, K.A. Soudki, Behaviour of PVC encased
reinforced concrete walls under eccentric axial loading, Structure 5 (2016) 67–75.
[4] N.A. Abdulla, Concrete filled PVC tube: a review, Construct. Build. Mater. 156
(2017) 321–329.
[5] S. De Sutter, O. Remy, T. Tysmans, J. Wastiels, Development and experimental
validation of a lightweight Stay-in-Place composite formwork for concrete beams,
Construct. Build. Mater. 63 (2014) 33–39.
[6] J.E. Hall, J.T. Mottram, Combined FRP reinforcement and permanent formwork for
concrete members, J. Compos. Construct. 2 (1998) 78–86.
[7] T.E. Ringelstetter, L.C. Bank, M.G. Oliva, J.S. Russell, F. Matta, A. Nanni, Cost-
effective, structural stay-in-place formwork system of fiber-reinforced polymer for
K. Kildashti et al.
accelerated and durable bridge deck construction, Transportation Research Record,
1976 (2006) 182–189.
[8] M. Nelson, A. Eldridge, A. Fam, The effects of splices and bond on performance of
bridge deck with FRP stay-in-place forms at various boundary conditions, Eng.
Struct. 56 (2013) 509–516.
[9] T. Jiang, X.M. Wang, G.M. Chen, J.J. Zhang, W.P. Zhang, Behavior of recycled
brick block concrete-filled FRP tubes under axial compression, Eng. Struct. 198
(2019), 109498.
[10] O. Youssf, R. Hassanli, J.E. Mills, Mechanical performance of FRP-confined and
unconfined crumb rubber concrete containing high rubber content, J Build Eng 11
(2017) 115–126.
[11] A. Mirmiran, Stay-in-place FRP form for concrete columns, Adv. Struct. Eng. 6
(2003) 231–241.
[12] K.S. A. Rteil, D. Richardson, Flexural Behavior of Octaform(TM) Forming System,
Special Publication, 257.
[13] T. Ozbakkaloglu, M. Saatcioglu, Seismic behavior of high-strength concrete
columns confined by fiber-reinforced polymer tubes, J. Compos. Construct. 10
(2006) 538–549.
[14] J.Z. Tong, W.H. Pan, M.H. Shen, Performance of double-skin composite walls with
re-entrant profiled faceplates under eccentric compression, J Build Eng 28 (2020).
[15] A. Mirmiran, M. Shahawy, M. Samaan, Strength and ductility of hybrid FRP-
concrete beam-columns, J. Struct. Eng. 125 (1999) 1085–1093.
[16] B.F. Amir Fam, R. Sami, Experimental and analytical modeling of concrete-filled
fiber-reinforced polymer tubes subjected to combined bending and axial loads, ACI
Struct. J., 100.
[17] A. Fam, S. Mandal, S. Rizkalla, Rectangular filament-wound glass fiber reinforced
polymer tubes filled with concrete under flexural and axial loading: analytical
modeling, J. Compos. Construct. 9 (2005) 34–43.
[18] G.Q. Li, S. Torres, W. Alaywan, C. Abadie, Experimental study of FRP tube-encased
concrete columns, J. Compos. Mater. 39 (2005) 1131–1145.
[19] M.N.S. Hadi, I.B.R. Widiarsa, Axial and flexural performance of square RC columns
wrapped with CFRP under eccentric loading, J. Compos. Construct. 16 (2012)
640–649.
[20] M.Z. Naser, R.A. Hawileh, J.A. Abdalla, Fiber-reinforced polymer composites in
strengthening reinforced concrete structures: a critical review, Eng. Struct. 198
(2019), 109542.
[21] Y.L. Li, X.L. Zhao, Hybrid double tube sections utilising seawater and sea sand
concrete, FRP and stainless steel, Thin-Walled Struct. 149 (2020).
[22] Z.F. Amir, H.R. Sami, Confinement model for axially loaded concrete confined by
circular fiber-reinforced polymer tubes, ACI Struct. J., 98.
[23] K. Karimi, M.J. Tait, W.W. El-Dakhakhni, Testing and modeling of a novel FRP-
encased steel-concrete composite column, Compos. Struct. 93 (2011) 1463–1473.
[24] Q. Cao, X.J. Li, Z.B. Lin, Z.M. Wu, Compression behavior of expansive concrete-
encased-steel filled square CFRP tubes, Compos. Struct. 225 (2019).
[25] G.Q. Li, S. Kidane, S.S. Pang, J.E. Helms, M.A. Stubblefield, Investigation into FRP
repaired RC columns, Compos. Struct. 62 (2003) 83–89.
[26] Y. Shao, A. Mirmiran, Experimental investigation of cyclic behavior of concrete-
filled fiber reinforced polymer tubes, J. Compos. Construct. 9 (2005) 263–273.
[27] A.E. Zaghi, M.S. Saiidi, A. Mirmiran, Shake table response and analysis of a
concrete-filled FRP tube bridge column, Compos. Struct. 94 (2012) 1564–1574.
[28] Y.C. Cai, W.M. Quach, B. Young, Experimental and numerical investigation of
concrete-filled hot-finished and cold-formed steel elliptical tubular stub columns,
Thin-Walled Struct. 145 (2019).
[29] T. Ghanbari-Ghazijahani, J.H. Wu, C.T. Ng, Plastic buckling and axial crushing of
concrete-filled steel tubes: usage of multiple wood blocks, Thin-Walled Struct. 150
(2020).
17
Journal of Building Engineering 36 (2021) 102131
[30] A.H. Varma, S. Shafaei, R. Klemencic, Steel modules of composite plate shear walls:
behavior, stability, and design, Thin-Walled Struct. 145 (2019).
[31] E. Eltayeb, X. Ma, Y. Zhuge, O. Youssf, J.E. Mills, J.Z. Xiao, Structural behaviour of
composite panels made of profiled steel sheets and foam rubberised concrete under
monotonic and cyclic shearing loads, Thin-Walled Struct. 151 (2020).
[32] Y. Xiao, W.H. He, K.K. Choi, Confined concrete-filled tubular columns, J. Struct.
Eng. 131 (2005) 488–497.
[33] M. Fakharifar, G.D. Chen, Compressive behavior of FRP-confined concrete-filled
PVC tubular columns, Compos. Struct. 141 (2016) 91–109.
[34] K. Kildashti, B. Samali, A. Malik, Experimental and numerical studies on the
comparison between stay-in-place- and conventionally-formed reinforced concrete
columns under concentric loading, Construct. Build. Mater. 258 (2020), 119631.
[35] K.G. Kuder, R. Gupta, C. Harris-Jones, R. Hawksworth, S. Henderson, J. Whitney,
Effect of PVC stay-in-place formwork on mechanical performance of concrete,
J. Mater. Civ. Eng. 21 (2009) 309–315.
[36] A.H. Chahrour, K.A. Soudki, RBS polymer encased concrete wall. Part II:
experimental study and theoretical provisions for combined axial compression and
flexure, Construct. Build. Mater. 20 (2006) 1016–1027.
[37] P.C.o.P.C.S. Panels, in: State of the Art of Precast/Prestressed Concrete Sandwich
Wall Panels, second ed., Pci J, 2011, pp. 131–176.
[38] H.G. Allen, Analysis and design of structural sandwich panels, in: H.G. Allen (Ed.),
Analysis and Design of Structural Sandwich Panels, Pergamon, 1969, pp. 245–263.
[39] D. Tomlinson, A. Fam, Flexural behavior of precast concrete sandwich wall panels
with basalt FRP and steel reinforcement, PCI J. (2015) 51–71.
[40] D.G. Tomlinson, N. Teixeira, A. Fam, New shear connector design for insulated
concrete sandwich panels using basalt fiber-reinforced polymer bars, J. Compos.
Construct. 20 (2016).
[41] AS3600, in: Concrete Structures, Australian Standards Limited, Sydney, New South
Wales, Australia, 2018.
[42] D.S. Simulia, in: Abaqus Analysis User’s Manual, Dassault Syst. Pawtucket, USA,
2010.
[43] J. Lubliner, J. Oliver, S. Oller, E. Onate, A plastic-damage model for concrete, Int.
J. Solid Struct. 25 (1989) 299–326.
[44] J.H. Lee, G.L. Fenves, Plastic-damage model for cyclic loading of concrete
structures, J Eng Mech-Asce 124 (1998) 892–900.
[45] V. Birtel, P. Mark, Parameterised finite element modelling of RC beam shear
failure, in: ABAQUS Users’ Conference, 2006, pp. 95–108.
[46] Materials, in: Fib Model Code for Concrete Structures, 2010, pp. 74–150.
[47] D.D. Hordijk, in: TENSILE AND TENSILE FATIGUE BEHAVIOUR OF CONCRETE,
EXPERIMENTS, MODELLING AND ANALYSES, 1992.
[48] V.S. Deshpande, N.A. Fleck, Isotropic constitutive models for metallic foams,
J. Mech. Phys. Solid. 48 (2000) 1253–1283.
[49] AS4671, in: Steel Reinforcing Materials, Asutralian Standards Limited, Sydney,
New South Wales, Australia, 2001.
[50] AS4600, in: Cold-formed Steel Structures, Asutralian Standards Limited, Sydney,
New South Wales, Australia, 2018.
[51] Cellulose-cement Products. Part 2: Flat Sheets, Asutralian Standards Limited,
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 2000.
[52] ASTM D695-15, in: Standard Test Method for Compressive Properties of Rigid
Plastics, ASTM International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2015.
[53] ASTM D638-14, in: Standard Test Method for Tensile Properties of Plastics, ASTM
International, West Conshohocken, PA, 2014.
[54] S.J. Foster, M.M. Attard, Strength and ductility of fiber-reinforced high-strength
concrete columns, J Struct Eng-Asce 127 (2001) 28–34.
[55] R.F. Warner, Concrete Structures, South Melbourne, Longman, South Melbourne,
1998.