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School of Engineering & Technology

M. Tech. Forensic Structural Engineering
Semester -III, 2021-2022

Forensic Structural Engineering Studio

(RDMCE15)

Investigation of L’ Ambiance Plaza

Building Collapse, Bridgeport, Connecticut
April 23, 1987

Gandhi Sagar
(101EGMTCE2021002)
Sr. No. Topics 2
1 Introduction
2 About the Structure
3 Construction Methodology
4 About the Disaster
5 Observations during Investigation
6 Collapse Pattern
7 Summary of Investigation
8 Laboratory Tests on Concrete Specimen
9 Laboratory Tests on Steel Specimen
10 Laboratory Tests on Weldments
 Introduction 3
 L’ Ambiance Plaza was a residential
building
 Being constructed in Bridgeport,
Connecticut
 Planned to be a 13-story complex,
with 3 levels in basement
 The lower 5 levels to be used as
parking garage
 The slabs used were two-way post-
tensioned flat plates
 Erected using the lift-slab
technique
East side 4
Elevation
Structural 5
System
Location of Post-tensioning 6
tendons
 About the Structure 7
 Two offset rectangular towers, each 112’ (34 m) × 62’ (19 m) in plan
 Steel columns and post-tensioned concrete flat plates
 Shear walls at four perimeter and four interior locations
 Each tower of the building was erected independently
 The slabs of both towers connected by cast-in-place RC pour strips in the center.
 It is a section of concrete slab left open to control shrinkage
 Can also be utilized to provide access for stressing of post-tensioning tendons
 They are usually left open to allow for the initial shrinkage, and then filled with
concrete after that time to complete slab continuity.
 The floor slabs were 7” (178 mm) thick, two-way unbonded PT flat plates
8
 Foundation was spread footings which were to rest on the underlying bedrock
 Combined footings along the basement walls on the north and east sides
Typical Column 9
Footing
 Construction 10
 The slabs were
Methodology
two-way post-
tensioned flat plates, cast one on top
of the other at ground level.
 After post-tensioning, the slabs were
raised to the desired elevation using
hydraulic jacks
 Fixing the floor slabs in position
mechanically.
 Eliminates the need for shoring or
other formwork underneath each
slab, and required only sides form
for the slabs be constructed.

11
Weld blocks are shop-welded to the
column flanges at floor levels.
 Wedges are rested on the weld block to
support the slabs in their temporary and
permanent positions.
 Shear-heads and wedges are welded to
the column, and then concreting the
shear-head pockets.
 The shear-heads are embedded in the
concrete and extend into the slab and
provide shear resistance so that the
column slab connection doesn't fail in
two-way punching shear.
12
 About the Disaster 13

 At approximately 1:30 PM on April 23, 1987

 Resulted in killing of 28 construction workers
 The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), requested the National Bureau
of Standards (NBS) to carry out an investigation of the failure on behalf of OSHA.
 On April 24, NBS sent the teams to investigate the matter
 SOP of 14

Investigation
The NBS team carried out investigations with following operating procedure:
o Gathering observations from the on-site investigations
o Collection of data and assessments made of the nature of the failure of various elements
of the structure
o Information on the collapse obtained from interviews of survivors and eye-witnesses
o Project documentation including design specifications, plans, shop drawings,
construction records, testing laboratory reports and project correspondence
o Laboratory tests of samples removed from the collapsed structure
o Data obtained from a subsurface investigation at the site after the collapse
o Analytical studies
 Observations of 15
 Collapse led to two
Debris
distinct
heaps of debris
 The clear area between the
heaps of debris is the service
core between the two towers .
 The columns are draped over
the pile of concrete floor slabs.
 It appears that the slabs
collapsed near the center of
each tower, pulling the
columns inward.
 Columns underwent inelastic The photographs were taken 2 hours after the collapse and before
bending action and plastic any significant removal of debris removal in the rescue operation
hinge formation in the upper
portions near level 1.
 The collapse toward the center led to inelastic bending of the upper portions of
the column C3 and twisted approximately 25 degrees. 16
 Column E1 showed significant inelastic
action and formation of a plastic hinge in the
upper portions near level 1.
 Bending occurred over the lower three
stories.
 Columns in the lower levels of the east tower
observed twisted in counterclockwise
direction. C3 E1
 No consistent pattern of the twists was seen in individual or group of columns.
 This indicates the slabs did not remain intact during the collapse of the building.
17

 A cracked shear-wall between grid #8-9 at north face, indicates the wall was subjected to a
shear force directed from west to east, view from the South.
 The slabs broke and the individual segments fell separately.
 Portions of the upper level slabs fell with the columns, rotating as the columns
18
deformed and bent toward the center of the building.
 Collapse Pattern 19
 There is no indication of any consistent translation
or rotation in which the structure deformed as a unit.
 Each column deformed independently and the floor
slabs broke early in the collapse sequence.
 The upper level slabs caused the columns to deflect
toward the center of the building as these slabs fell.
 The lower levels of the columns remained relatively
straight and in most cases vertical.
 Significant deformations or buckling of the columns
in general occurred at the ground level or level 1,
quite evident for C1, C2, C3, C5, C6, E3, G1, H1, H2
and H5.
 The slabs separated
from the shear- 20
heads and aligned
The deformations of the
in a nearly vertical
shear-heads for column
position and the PT
D10 at various levels
strands are clearly
during the collapse, placed
visible.
in stack.

 Most of the shear-heads located in upper levels were relatively undamaged.

 This indicates that they were not subjected to large forces to induce substantial inelastic
deformations during the collapse. These may be due to:
o the PT in the slabs could have been lost early in the collapse and the slabs broke away from
the shear-heads, or
o the wedges supporting the upper level slabs could have been dislodged or the weld blocks
on the columns could have sheared off.
 Some concrete was expected to remain partially
intact around the shear-heads due to the 21
presence of the reinforcing steel in the vicinity of
the columns.
 Clearly, the wedges supporting the slabs in the
upper levels were dislodged and the PT was lost
early in the collapse.
 The shear-heads underwent tremendous forces
and failed; a punching shear failure of the slab or
to fail the welds between the weld block and the
column or the welds between the wedges and the
weld blocks. Each of these conditions occurred.
 In general, shear-heads on perimeter columns
remained in place at the floor levels. On the
interior columns, the shear-heads were dislodged
and came together
 The concrete slabs broke away from the shear-heads
around the perimeter leaving the shear-heads in place. 22
 At the interior columns, the slabs exerted sufficient force
to fail the shear-head column connection. There was more
conventional reinforcing in the slab at the interior columns
than at the perimeter columns.
 PT tendons were running through the C-sections of shear-
head rather than over them, probably due to the need to
locate them at mid-depth of the slab.
 The performance of the welds varied
throughout the structure. In some cases the 23
welds remained intact without signs of
distress while in other cases the welds failed.
 Despite the apparently high forces exerted
on the column section and severe
deformations, the column splice weld
remained intact.
 There were no apparent deformations of the
elements of the connection and it is not clear
to what force the connection was subjected.
 At many places the welds have not fractured
but rather the wedge separated from the
weld, probably due to the lack of fusion.
Column Deformation 24
Pattern
25
 Summary from 26
 Investigation
Wedges were being placed under slabs #9, 10, 11 in the west tower at the time of the collapse.
 There was no displacement or motion of the building immediately prior to the collapse.
 The collapse was preceded by a loud noise heard around.
 The collapse began in the upper levels of the west tower.
 The total time involved from initiation to complete collapse was from 2 to 10 seconds.
 Each tower collapsed toward its center; there was no indication of any translation or rotation
in which the structure deformed as a unit.
 The wedges supporting the slabs in the upper levels of the west tower were dislodged and the
PT in the slabs was lost early in the collapse.
 Many of the shear-heads in the upper levels of the structure were undamaged; shear-heads in
the lower levels were significantly deformed.
 In general, the columns along grid C experienced the most damage in the collapse.
 The columns along line E experienced less damage than did those in line C. 27
 There were many instances where the wedges were dislodged without any visible damage to
the contact surface on the weld blocks.
 State of 28
Construction

West Tower East Tower

 Laboratory 29

Tests
Some material tests that were conducted includes:
o cores cut from random sections of the concrete slabs and shear-walls

o coupon specimens cut from flanges and webs of the columns

o coupon specimens of the welds used to splice column sections

o coupons cut from the prestressing strand used in construction of the floor slabs

 Major structural components tested includes shear-heads, jack rods, and a shear-head-
column connection, to determine the strength of the various materials and components.
 Tests on 30
 95 mm diameter cores were cutConcrete
by diamond core bit and tested (ASTM C 42)
 Weight and lengths were measured before and after capping
 43 core samples were taken from various random portions of the slabs and shear-walls.
 Rebound Hammer test was also performed to know the variability in strength (ASTM C 805)
 The tests indicated that the concrete quality was relatively uniform throughout the structure.
 The average compressive strength was 37.4 MPa from slabs and 31.5 MPa from shear-walls.
 The strengths of samples taken from the collapsed structure were higher than that of the
standard cylinders tested in laboratory. The samples taken from the collapse were much older,
and the conditions of placement of the concrete were more variable.
 Two questions were being raised to the concrete; concrete might have frozen causing it to
weaken. Facts that the contractor covered it with electric heating blankets and no concrete
found having lesser strength than specified eliminated the question.
 A second question has been raised about the use of a set-accelerating admixture
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in some of the concrete in the floor slabs during cold weather.

 It has been speculated that the use of admixture during cold weather weakened the concrete.
 Records of the testing laboratory indicate that the average 28–day strength of cylinders cast in
conjunction with the placement of these floor slabs was 33.3 MPa.
 The use of the admixture, therefore, does not appear to have reduced the strength of the
concrete.
 Tests on 32
 Steel
Tensile coupon tests were conducted to evaluate the mechanical properties of steel in the
columns. Its objectives were:
o to determine the degree of variability of the mechanical properties within a sample
o to determine the conformance to the requirements of ASTM A 36 and ASTM A 572
o to compare the results with laboratory tests conducted by the steel manufacturer.
 Short video on tensile test for coupon specimen
 Three column segments, two obtained from the landfill and one obtained from the
construction site, were the sources of the specimens.
 Based on the original thicknesses of the flanges, six coupons were cut as standard 457 mm
long except one, 203 mm long coupon, due to insufficient parent material in flange.
 Specimens were tested to failure in tension according to ASTM procedures in a 267 kN
capacity Baldwin testing machine for the 203 mm long coupons and a 1779 kN capacity
Tinius-Olsen testing machine for the 457 mm long coupons.
 Combining the coupons from column segments, the results are:
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o The average static yield stress was 265 MPa

o The average ultimate tensile strength was 468 MPa

o The average percentage elongation in a 50 mm gage length was 38.2

o The average percentage elongation in an 200 mm gage length was 29.4

o The average value for the elastic modulus was 205 MPa
 Tests on 34
 In the first part, flat couponsWeldments
were machined from three spliced column segments. On two
segments, columns with the same c/s dimensions were joined. The third segment contained a
transition joint from a thick flange section to a thin flange section.
 Fifteen flat transverse-weld coupons were machined in accordance with ASTM E 8 -85b from
three column segments identified as NBS 26, 27, and 28.
 Column segment 26 was cut from a splice between two W12×136 members.
 Column segment 27 includes a W12×120 upper column and a W12×152 lower column.
 Column segment 28 consisted of portions of two W12×65 members and was cut from a
column marked “12B”.
 Five coupons were machined from each segment 2 from each flange and 1 from each web.
 Preparation of specimens were done by first milling the flat surfaces of the rectangular strips
to obtain uniform thicknesses and then grinding the surfaces to remove milling marks and to
make the faces parallel.
 For the second part, one flat coupon was cut from each of column segments.
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 The three coupons were 457 mm long and 38 mm wide.
 Only the side surfaces were machined, face surfaces were left unmachined, giving each coupon
the same thickness as the flange of the column segments from which it was cut. None of the
weld metal was machined off as in the first part of the weldment test series.
 Specimens were tested to failure in tension in the 267 kN capacity Baldwin testing machine
for the 101 mm and 202 mm long coupons. The 1779 kN capacity Tinius-Olsen testing
machine was used for the 457 mm long coupons.
 The elongations of the 202 mm and 457 mm coupons were measured using a modified Tinius-
Olsen LVDT extensometer attached to the reduced section. For the 101 mm coupons, strain
gages were attached to the two flat surfaces. A dial gage with a least reading of 0.025 mm was
attached to the lower crosshead of the testing machine to measure the elongation.
 Tests on Post-tensioning 36
 strands
Two series of tension tests were conducted on specimens of the post-tensioning strands.
 First series on 1.27 mt long segments of unused strand obtained from the city landfill. The
second series was run on 1.27 mt long segments of strands taken from debris at the
construction site.
 The specifications for such strand are 12.7 mm, seven-wire strand, with a minimum breaking
strength of 184 kN and minimum yield strength of 165 kN (i.e. 90 percent of the specified
minimum breaking strength).
 Standard V-Grips and special strand holders were used in a 1779 kN Tinius-Olsen testing
machine to grip the specimens. Between each set of V-Grips was placed a 127 mm long
aluminum alloy block, split lengthwise. The block was prepared by drilling a 12.7 mm
diameter hole lengthwise through a 50.8-mm square block of aluminum, and then sawing the
block in half lengthwise. Thus, a semi-circular trough in the block conformed to the perimeter
of the strands. Bearing against the top of the upper block and the bottom of the lower block
was a 101. 6 mm long commercial post- tensioning strand chuck. The chucks served to anchor
 Summarizing the 37
 Building; its features,Presentation
specifications, construction methodology, drawings, etc.
 Disaster in brief
 Commencement of Investigation
 Observations from on-site investigation
 Collapse pattern in brief
 Summarizing the investigation
 State of construction during collapse
 Laboratory Tests and their results
 38

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