111

Bond strength of concrete plugs embedded in

tubular steel piles under cyclic loading
Abolghasem Nezamian, Riadh Al-Mahaidi, and Paul Grundy

Abstract: Investigation of the load transfer of concrete plugs to tubular steel piles subjected to tension and compression and cyclic loading has been conducted at Monash University over the past 3 years. The work presented in this paper reports on the results of the combination of pull-out, push-out, and cyclic loading tests carried out on 15 steel tube
specimens filled partially with reinforced concrete with variable lengths of embedment. The pull-out force was applied
through steel reinforcing bars embedded in the concrete plug, and push-out forces were applied through a thick top circular plate on the top of the concrete plug. Test results included the cyclic loading, ultimate pull-out and push-out
forces, slip of concrete plugs, and longitudinal and hoop strains along the piles for some specimens. The tests clearly
showed that average bond strength significantly exceeds expectations and is higher than the results of previous investigations using plugs without reinforcement. The test results also indicated that cyclic loading tests reduced the bond
strength due to the accumulation of damage to the plugpile interface. The push-out and pull-out tests conducted under
symmetric cyclic loading demonstrated that slip between the concrete plug and the steel tube increased with repeated
loading, and the rate of slip growth increased with an increase in the peak load.
Key words: tubular steel pile, reinforced concrete plug, bond, cyclic loading.
Rsum : Le transfert de charge des bouchons de bton aux pieux tubulaires en acier soumis des charges de tension,
de compression et cycliques a t tudi lUniversit Monash au cours des trois dernires annes. Le travail prsent
dans cet article examine les rsultats de la combinaison des essais darrachement, de contrainte par expulsion et de
chargement cyclique effectus sur 15 tubes dacier partiellement remplis de bton arm dont les longueurs dencastrement varient. La force darrachement a t applique des tiges darmature en acier encastres dans le bouchon de bton, et les contraintes par expulsion ont t appliques sur une plaque circulaire paisse reposant sur le bouchon de
bton. Les rsultats des essais comprennent le chargement cyclique, les forces limites darrachement et dexpulsion, le
glissement des bouchons de bton et les contraintes longitudinales et circonfrentielles le long les pieux pour certains
chantillons. Les essais montrent clairement que la rsistance moyenne du lien dpasse de manire significative les attentes et elle est suprieure aux rsultats des tudes antrieures utilizant des bouchons sans renforcement. Les rsultats
dessais montrent galement que les essais de chargement cyclique ont rduit la rsistance du lien en raison de laccumulation de dommages linterface bouchonpieu. Les essais de contrainte par expulsion et darrachements effectus
sous des chargements cycliques symtriques ont dmontr que le glissement entre le bouchon de bton et le tube en
acier augmente avec la rptition des charges et que le taux de glissement augmente avec la charge de pointe.
Mots cls : pieux tubulaires en acier, bouchon de bton arm, lien, charge cyclique.
[Traduit par la Rdaction]

Nezamian et al.

125

Introduction
The legs of platforms of many offshore and coastal structures are usually founded on tubular steel piles through reinforced concrete pile caps. Wave, wind, and earthquake loads
tend to induce compressive and uplift forces in the legs that
in turn subject the piles to cyclic compression and tension
loading. This transfer of forces takes place through a concrete plug embedded in the top of the steel pile. The resis-

tance of the embedded concrete plug to slip is due to the

steelconcrete bond stress along the plug length (see Fig. 1).
In recent years, many investigations have resulted in analysis and design rules for concrete-filled steel columns based
on experimental models of steel tubes filled with plain concrete and tested in compression. The composite action in
such columns is due to the bond strength and mechanical interlock. Investigations have shown that these mechanisms
depend on the surface roughness of the steel tube and the

Received 19 May 2004. Revision accepted 12 September 2005. Published on the NRC Research Press Web site at http://cjce.nrc.ca
on 11 February 2006.
A. Nezamian.1 School of Civil and Chemical Engineering, RMIT University, City Campus, Melbourne, VIC 3001, Australia.
R. Al-Mahaidi and P. Grundy. Department of Civil Engineering, Monash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, VIC 3800,
Australia.
Written discussion of this article is welcomed and will be received by the Editor until 30 June 2006.
1

Corresponding author (e-mail: abe.nezamian@rmit.edu.au).

Can. J. Civ. Eng. 33: 111125 (2006)

doi:10.1139/L05-091

2006 NRC Canada

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Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Fig. 1. Typical connection between a steel pile and a concrete pile cap. RL, reduced level.
Reinforcing
bars

Reinforcing bars
R10 rings

Bottom of
Dolphin

30

SECTION A - A

RL

175 Pour concrete

with cap

300

plug

mm

Conc
rete

A
RL

Rak
e 1:3

shape variation of the cross section of the steel tube. Values

of bond strength reported in the literature varied from 0.2 to
1.0 MPa. In contrast, a literature search has revealed that no
investigations have been carried out on steel tubes filled
with reinforced concrete.
The earliest experimental study of the bond strength of
concrete-filled steel tubes was carried out by Virdi and
Dowling (1975). A number of parameters were varied to
study their effects on the bond strength between concrete
and steel. It was concluded that the resistance to the pushout test in filled tubes derives primarily from the interlocking of concrete in two types of imperfections in steel. The
first relates to the surface roughness of the steel, and the second to variation in the shape of the cross section, away from
the ideal cylindrical surface. The interlocking of concrete in
the surface roughness of steel (i.e., micro-locking) contributes a useful component of the ultimate bond strength
related to the initially stiff region of the load deflection characteristics. Virdi and Dowling proposed the bond strength of
1 MPa for design. An extensive investigation of the push-out
strength of concrete-filled tubular members was undertaken
by Shakir-Khalil (1991, 1993a, 1993b). The main parameters studied were the shape of the tube, interface length, interface condition, and use of mechanical connectors. It was
also noted that, in agreement with Virdi and Dowling, specimen length was not a significant factor in the bond strength.
Further, it was shown that the circular hollow section (CHS)
tube had a superior load-carrying capacity compared with
the rectangular hollow section (RHS) tube. The resistance of
the circular section is enhanced due to the much stiffer confinement of the concrete during slip as it rides over the asperities and irregularities of profile of the steel tube. A bond
strength of 0.4 MPa was proposed for design purposes. The
test results and analytical study of Roeder et al. (1999) in an
examination of the bond stress capacity of circular concrete-

e 1:3
Rak

Face of
mooring
dolphin

filled tube (CFT) members indicated that the maximum average bond stress capacity is somewhat smaller with longer
column lengths and larger diameter to thickness (D/t) ratios
and diameters due to the lack of the stiffness to enforce the
benefits of irregularity in the cross section.
Test results from the aforementioned studies showed that
the average bond stress for rectangular tubes was approximately 70% smaller than that for circular tubes and indicated that the influences of the steel tube aspect ratio (D/t)
and the ratio of concrete core length to depth (L/D) on the
bond strength are not completely understood.
The bond resistance of reinforced concrete plugs embedded in tubular steel piles under pull-out and push-out loadings has been investigated by Nezamian et al. (2001, 2003,
2002) and Al-Mahaidi et al. (1999). The pull-out bond
strength tested in specimens having a concrete plug
embedment length to tube inner diameter ratio of L/Di = 1
ranged from 4.3 to 6.2 MPa. It was not possible to determine
the pull-out bond strength for specimens with L/Di > 1 due
to yielding and rupture of the embedded steel bars, which
preceded the development of full bond strength. The pushout strength of reinforced concrete plugs embedded in tubular steel piles revealed capacities higher than those reported
by others. This was attributed, in part, to the presence of reinforcement in the plug and smaller concrete plug
embedment length to tube inner diameter L/Di compared
with the other reported investigations. Bond strengths of
from 2.0 to 7.3 MPa were achieved.

Current code provisions

The provisions of British Standard BS5400, Steel, concrete and composite bridges (BSI 1979), recommend that
shear connectors be provided where the shear stresses at the
steelconcrete interface, due to the design ultimate loads, ex 2006 NRC Canada

Nezamian et al.

A total of 15 specimens were constructed and tested for

the purpose of investigating the effect of cyclic loading on
the bond strength of concrete plugs embedded in tubular
steel piles. Only one circular steel tube size and concrete
strength were used. The structural steel tube of grade 250
with nominal yield strength of 250 MPa and ultimate tensile
strength of 350 MPa was used (SAA 1983). The steel tubes
had an outside average diameter Di of 237 mm and an average wall thickness of 11.5 mm. The steel tubes were cut to a
length of 600 mm. The inner surfaces of the steel tubes were
scrubbed with a wire brush to remove any excess corrosion,
dirt, or other material. The formwork was fabricated and
placed at the bottom of the specimens considering the different depths of concrete plugs. The specified reinforcing cages
were placed in the specimens and tack welded in position to
ensure the cage would not move during pouring of the concrete. The reinforcing bars in all specimens consisted of six
Y24 bars (24 mm diameter deformed bar with nominal yield
strength of 400 MPa). The reinforcement was 5% of the
gross area of the concrete plug based on the threaded area of
the bars (Fig. 2).
One cubic metre of 32 MPa concrete with a slump of 80
100 mm was ordered to manufacture the specimens. General
purpose (GP) Portland cement was used (SAA 1997), with a
water to cement ratio of 0.5 and cement to aggregate ratio of
1/7. This was in accordance with SAA (1993). The maximum aggregate size was limited to 20 mm. The result of the
slump test on the concrete batch on arrival revealed a slump
of 100 mm, and cylinder compressive strength test results indicated 40 MPa at an age of 38 days. The concrete was carefully placed and then vibrated into each specimen to ensure
satisfactory compaction. The specifications of the constructed specimens are summarized in Table 1.
The top surface was prepared with plaster to provide a
level surface and ensure even distribution of the compressive
forces. The supporting timber formwork was removed, and
the base plates were then welded to each sample. This process involved placing the samples in the test rig to ensure the
reinforcement bars were correctly aligned with the testing
rig. The base plate was then tack welded, removed from the
rig, and then fully welded with three passes.
As shown in Fig. 3, the loads were applied through a thick
circular steel plate placed on the concrete surface of the plug
and bolted to the reinforcing bars. An Instron servo-controlled
actuator of 1000 kN dynamic capacity and 1250 kN static capacity was used to load the specimens on pull-out, push-out,
and cycling loading tests. This gave a comfortable margin of
capacity over the anticipated ultimate pull-out force of
1000 kN (to prevent the failure of threaded bars). An Instron

50 mm

6 mm round bars
Ring Reinforcements

Concrete
40 MPa Compressive Strength

Length

Variable Concrete Embedment

Experimental program for cyclic tests

Fig. 2. Typical test specimen.

600 mm

ceed 0.4 MPa for concrete-filled steel sections. According to

Eurocode 4 (ECS 1994), the design shear strength due to
bond and friction for a concrete-filled hollow section should
be taken as 0.4 MPa.
Both codes recommend the same value for bondshear
strength between concrete and steel regardless of concrete
properties, length of concrete embedment, shape of steel
hollow section, roughness of internal surface, and loading
regime.

113

40 mm
6

24 mm deformed bars

244 mm OD Steel Tube

11 mm Thickness
6 mm plain bars
Ring Reinforcements

8500 controller, which allowed load and displacement control and had programmable trapezoidal control waveforms,
which were utilized for the cyclic loading tests, controlled
the actuator. Displacement control was used for the pull-out
and push-out tests, and load control (with displacement limit
set) was used for all cyclic tests.
The monotonic tests (pull out and push out) were conducted at a displacement rate of 0.015 mm/s. The time taken
to reach the peak load was varied in the order of 510 min.
The cyclic tests were conducted with a symmetric triangular cyclic loading with no holding time at the peak load.
Wind and wave loading can be simulated using this load
protocol. For every cyclic test, the loading was repeated for
a predetermined number of cycles, with data continuously
recorded. The load range was then increased, and the new
loading was repeated, usually for the same number of cycles.
For the cyclic tests, the load versus time function was triangular. A typical function is shown in Fig. 4.
The type of tests on each specimen and the loading rates
and number of cycles per load range are summarized in Tables 2 and 3.
A string linear variable displacement transducer (LVDT)
was used to measure the relative movement (slip) between
the concrete core and the steel tube. Most of the test specimens were strain-gauged along the outer surface of the steel
tube within the length of the concrete plug. Both longitudinal and hoop direction gauges were used. The purpose of
these gauges was to determine from the axial stress in the
steel tube the distribution of shear stress along the contact
area. Additional strain gauges were used on the opposite
side of the tubes to establish whether the loading arrangement introduced significant eccentricity in the specimen.
Strain gauge arrangements are shown in Fig. 5.
It was decided to investigate the effect of cyclic loadings
on bond strength in two stages of experimental work. The
first stage focused on determination of the effect of the initial cyclic loading on the ultimate pull-out strength. The sec 2006 NRC Canada

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Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Table 1. Specifications of constructed specimens.
Specimen
No.

Tube length,
Lp (mm)

Tube internal
diameter, Di (mm)

Tube wall
thickness, t (mm)

Concrete plug
length, Lconc (mm)

Lconc/Di

Di/t

S1.0D-1
S1.0D-2
S1.0D-3
S1.25D-1
S1.25D-2
S1.25D-3
S1.5D-1
S1.5D-2
S1.5D-3
S1.75D-1
S1.75D-2
S1.75D-3
S2.0D-1
S2.0D-2
S2.0D-3

600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600
600

222
222
222
222
222
222
222
222
222
222
222
222
218
218
218

11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
13
13
13

222
222
222
278
278
278
333
333
333
389
389
389
444
444
444

1.00
1.00
1.00
1.25
1.25
1.25
1.50
1.50
1.50
1.75
1.75
1.75
2.00
2.00
2.00

20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
20.2
16.8
16.8
16.8

Fig. 3. Cyclic loading test arrangements. LVDT, linear variable displacement transducer.
Load from the load cell
LVDT

Instron servo-controlled actuator

Load Cell

Support stand

Concrete plug in steel tube

Strong Floor

F orce ( kN)

Fig. 4. Typical load (force) versus time function for specimen

S1.0D-2.
250
200
150
100
50
0
-50
-100
-150
-200
-250
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

Time (s)

ond stage was aimed mainly at studying failure of the

specimens subjected to cyclic loadings. Determination of the
effect of shrinkage on bond strength is also explored in this
set of experiments.

Test results of stage 1

The aim of stage 1 was to evaluate the effect of initial cyclic loading on ultimate pull-out strength. Three specimens
each of two different concrete plug lengths (1.0D and 1.5D)
were tested. The first specimen of each plug length group
was tested for static tension capacity to enable the assessment of cyclic load effects. This was followed by a push-out
test. The other two specimens were then initially subjected
to two sets of 10 cycles of 150 and 250 kN for series S1.0D
specimens and 250 and 400 kN for series S1.5D specimens.

The magnitude of the cyclic load was decided based on approximately 0.25 and 0.40 of the static ultimate strength of
the specimens at 2 mm slip. This was followed by monotonic pull-out tests. A total of six successful tests were
conducted, including two monotonic tests to determine the
pull-out strength of the concrete plug and four pull-out tests
with initial symmetric cyclic loadings. Table 2 lists the peak
loads achieved and corresponding average bond strengths.
The slip values at peak load, initial type of cyclic loading
test, and age of the concrete on the test date are also tabulated. Average bond strength was calculated by dividing the
ultimate pull-out or push-out forces by the contact area of
steelconcrete.
Specimen S1.0D-1 failed at an ultimate pull-out strength
of 665 kN, followed by a push-out test, which resulted in an
ultimate push-out capacity of 525 kN. Specimen S1.5D-1
achieved a pull-out strength of 1000 kN at a slip of 1.7 mm.
This was followed by a push-out test, which resulted in an
ultimate push-out capacity of 1000 kN at a slip of 1.5 mm.
Specimens S1.0D-2 and S1.0D-3 were then initially subjected to 10 symmetric cycles of 150 kN followed by
another 10 symmetric cycles of 250 in tension and compression. This was followed by pull-out tests, which resulted
in ultimate loads of 711 and 405 kN for specimens S1.0D-2
and S1.0D-3, respectively. Specimen S1.5D-2 was initially
subjected to 10 symmetric cycles of 250 kN. This was followed by a pull-out test, which resulted in an ultimate load
of 500 kN. Specimen S1.5D-3 was initially subjected to 10
symmetric cycles of 250 kN followed by another 10 sym 2006 NRC Canada

Nezamian et al.

115

Table 2. Summary of the tests conducted in stage 1.

Specimen
No.
S1.0D-1
S1.0D-2

S1.0D-3

S1.5D-1
S1.5D-2

S1.5D-3

Type of test

Max. load
(kN)

Hold time
(min)

Avg. bond
strength (MPa)

Max. slip
(mm)

Cycle time
(min)

No. of
cycles

Concrete
age (days)

Pull out
Push out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Pull outa
Push outa
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Push out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out

665
525
150
250
711
150
250
410
1000
1000
230
500
400
230
400
404

15
19
40
40
24
40
40
39
17
18
40
8
24
40
40
39

4.20
3.31
0.94
1.58
4.49
0.94
1.58
2.59
4.30
4.30
0.99
2.15
1.72
0.99
1.72
1.74

2.3
7.5
0.6
1.0
12.2
0.2
0.7
11.7
1.7
1.5
0.2
1.8
6.8
0.1
2.4
9.2

4
4

4
4

4
4

10
10

10
10

10

10
10

32
32
26
26
26
26
26
26
29
29
28
28
28
28
28
28

The maximum load was limited by the capacity of the loading system and does not correspond to ultimate strength response.

metric cycles of 400 kN. The specimen failed at the end of

the cyclic loading test.
Average bond strengths of 4.3 MPa were achieved for
static pull-out tests and 2.8 MPa for pull-out tests with a cyclic loading effect. The test results indicated that pre-cyclic
loading tests reduced the bond strength due to the prior damage to the plugpile interface.
Loadslip response
Figure 6 shows the loadslip response of specimen series
S1.0D and S1.5D. In pull out, specimen S1.0D-1 exhibited a
decay in shearbond load as slip increased after peaking at a
slip of 1.01.5 mm. This is the expected result associated
with a plug in a properly circular straight pile. In push out,
the specimen exhibited some slip at an initial load of
300 kN. This is attributed to reversal of permanent slip created by the prior pull-out test. The initial slip of 2.0 mm is
believed to be recovery of permanent pull-out slip. The specimen then exhibited a gradual increase in load transfer as
slip increased after reaching an applied load of 450 kN at a
slip of 1.0 mm. A possible explanation for this is that the
initial pull-out test prestressed the interface. Macro interlock
effects are then created when the slip becomes significant.
These caused an increase in the contact stress between the
steel tube and concrete plug, which increases the frictional
resistance. Specimens S1.0D-2 and S1.0D-3 exhibited a typical loadslip response in tension after initial cyclic loading
characterized by a gradual decrease in load transfer as slip
increased after peaking at a slip of 1.0 mm. The loadslip of
specimen S1.0D-2 indicates that the initial cyclic loading
may not have a significant effect on the loadslip behaviour
and the pull-out strength of the specimen. On the contrary,
the loadslip response of specimen S1.0D-3 shows that the
initial cyclic loading reduced the interface stiffness and
shear transfer between the concrete and the steel tube. This
was due to the prior damage to the plugpile interface.
As can be seen in Fig. 6, the loadslip response of specimen S1.5D-1 shows typical behaviour in the pull-out test
with a peak load of 1000 kN at a slip of 1.7 mm. The test

procedure stopped at 1000 kN, as the specimen reached the

limitation of the test instrumentation. The loadslip of the
specimen in push out shows gradual reversal slip to a load
level of 300 kN. This is attributed to the reversal of permanent slip created by the prior pull-out test. The specimen
then reached a load level of 1000 kN at a slip of 1.0 mm.
Specimen S1.5D-2 exhibited a typical loadslip response in
tension after initial cyclic loading. It was characterized by a
gradual decrease in load transfer as slip increased after peaking at a slip of 1.0 mm.
Specimen S1.5D-3 failed at the end of the second 10 cycles. The loadslip response of the specimen indicates that
the initial cyclic loading reduced the ultimate strength of the
specimen to the level of the second cyclic load of 400 kN.
This was due to the significant damage to the plugpile interface. The post-failure response shows an almost constant
shear transfer in the pull-out test after cyclic loading. This
behaviour continued until the slip values reached 9.2 mm.
The loadslip response of the specimens indicated that the
loadslip curves of the pull-out test with a cyclic effect are
similar to those obtained for monotonic static tests. The
shifting between these two curves in the ordinate load axis is
due to the different cyclic loading rate and concrete plug
length. The effects of cycling rate and the cyclic reduction
factor are discussed in the following sections.

Test results of stage 2

Previous test results (Nezamian et al. 2001, 2002) indicated that the ultimate push-out strength of the specimen is
most likely less than the ultimate pull-out strength. Stage 2
of the experimental work was then planned to evaluate the
failure of the specimens, subjected to cyclic loading based
on the ultimate push-out strength of the specimen. Three
specimens each of three different concrete plug lengths
(1.25D, 1.75D, and 2.0D) were then tested. The first specimen of each plug length group was tested for static compression capacity to enable the assessment of cyclic load effects,
which were often followed by pull-out tests. The other two
2006 NRC Canada

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Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Table 3. Summary of the tests conducted in stage 2.

Specimen
No.
S1.25D-1
S1.25D-2

S1.25D-3
S1.75D-1
S1.75D-2

S1.75D-3

S2.0D-1

S2.0D-2
S2.0D-3

Type of test

Max.
load (kN)

Hold time
(min)

Avg. bond
strength (MPa)

Max. slip
(mm)

Cycle time
(min)

No. of
cycles

Concrete
age (days)

Push out
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Push out
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Push outa
Pull outa
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Pull out
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading
Cyclic loading

443
460
260
310
439
245
540
395
330
100
125
150
175
200
225
250
275
300
431
150
200
225
250
1000
1000
500
550
600
600
600
479
200
250
300
350

51
36
20
20
20
7
12
7
12
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
20
16
9
20
20
20
14
60
40
44
40
5
5
30
2
20
20
20
5

2.29
2.38
1.34
1.60
2.27
1.26
2.79
1.45
1.21
0.37
0.46
0.55
0.65
0.74
0.83
0.93
1.01
1.11
1.59
0.55
0.74
0.83
0.93
3.29
3.29
1.64
1.81
1.97
1.97
1.97
1.57
0.66
0.82
0.99
1.15

2.75
24.50
1.05
7.95
24.10
8.02
20.90
7.48
12.00
0.12
0.17
0.23
0.30
0.37
0.56
0.84
1.67
14.80
1.37
0.03
2.16
7.72
18.60
1.89
1.24
1.75
2.95
2.97
3.25
16.00
16.70
0.54
1.43
2.97
30.80

2
4

4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4
4

4
4
4
4

4
4
4
4
4

4
4
4
4

10
5

1.75

5
5
5
5
5
5
5
5
4

5
5
5
3.50

11
7
1.25
1.25
7.25

5
5
5
1

403
403
404
404
404
409
409
410
410
716
716
716
716
716
716
716
716
716
717
717
717
717
717
703
703
703
703
703
703
703
710
713
713
713
713

The maximum load was limited by the capacity of the loading system and does not correspond to ultimate strength response.

specimens were initially subjected to a variety of different

cyclic loadings. This was followed by monotonic pull-out
tests. It was decided that the magnitude of cyclic loading
would start from 0.6 of the ultimate strength of the specimen
and would then be reduced to 0.3 of the ultimate strength
due to early failure of specimens S1.25D-1 and S1.25D-2.
This stage of the experiment took place about 2 years after
construction of the specimens. Therefore, determination of
the effect of shrinkage on bond strength of concrete plugs
can also be evaluated with this set of test data. A total of 12
successful tests were conducted, including three monotonic
tests to determine the push-out strength of the concrete plug,
six tests with symmetric cyclic loading of the specimens,
and three tests with extra pull-out tests to evaluate the effect
of cyclic loading. Table 3 lists the peak loads achieved and
corresponding average bond strengths. The slip values at
peak load, initial type of cyclic loading test, and age of concrete on the date of the test are also tabulated.
A total of 35 tests were carried out on nine specimens.
The pull-out bond strength varied between 3.3 and 1.2 MPa,

with an average of 2.3 MPa for seven pull-out tests. The

push-out bond strength varied between 3.3 and 0.9 MPa,
with an average of 2.3 MPa for three push-out tests. The cyclic bond strength varied between 2.0 and 0.9 MPa, with an
average of 1.3 MPa for six cyclic loading tests. The test results indicated that cyclic bond strength is lower than ultimate static pull-out or push-out bond strengths. This is due
to the incremental damage to the plugpile interface. The
shrinkage cracks were observed at the concretesteel interface in most of the specimens prior to testing. It is then concluded that shrinkage can be very detrimental to bond stress
capacity and reduces the bond strength with time.
Loadslip response
Figures 7, 8, and 9 show the loadslip response of specimen series S1.25D, S1.75D, and S2.0D, respectively. In
static push-out tests, specimen S1.25D-1 exhibited a decay
shear transfer after peaking at a slip of 1.01.5 mm. This is
the expected result associated with a plug in a properly circular straight pile. This fretting of the cement matrix on the
2006 NRC Canada

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117

Fig. 5. Strain gauge arrangements. All measurements in millimetres.

50

steel surface has a powdering effect, removing the interlock

with asperities on the steel surface and lowering the effective coefficient of friction. In the following pull-out test, the
specimen experienced a reversal slip at a load level of
300 kN. The slip is believed to be a recovery of permanent
push-out slip. The specimen then showed a gradual increase
in load transfer as slip increased. This is due to the initial
push-out test, which consolidated the concrete in the steel
tube. Macro interlock effects were then created when the
slip became significant. These raised the contact stress between the steel tube and the concrete plug, which increased
the friction resistance.
Specimen S1.25D-2 reached its ultimate strength at the
end of initial symmetric cyclic loading of 310 kN. The
specimen then showed a smooth decay shear transfer after
peaking at a slip of 8 mm in the subsequent pull-out test.
This was due to significant damage to the plugpile interface
during the initial cyclic loading. Specimen S1.25D-3 failed
at the second cycle of the first cyclic loading range after
reaching a slip of 8 mm. In the following pull-out test, the
specimen exhibited a gradual increase in load transfer as slip

Specimen
S1.25D

Steel Tube

120

120

Steel Tube

Concrete Plug

SECTION A-A

50

444
600

50

50 40 40 40 40 40 44 40 40 40 40 40

Steel Tube

Concrete Plug
A

One longitudinal gauge

One transverse gauge

Specimen
S1.75D

50 40 40 40 40 68.5 40 40 40 40

388.5

2x1 longitudinal gauge

One each side
One longitudinal gauge
One transverse gauge

600

Specimen
S1.5D

Steel Tube

Specimen
S1.0D

Steel Tube

33

600

Concrete Plug

37.5
277.5
A

60

600

50 40 40 40 40 40 40

600

2x1 longitudinal gauge

One each side
One longitudinal gauge
One transverse gauge

Concrete Plug

60 30
75
333

75

Concrete Plug

2x1 longitudinal gauge

One each side
One longitudinal gauge
One transverse gauge

32

222

40 40 40 40 30

2x1 longitudinal gauge

One each side
One longitudinal gauge
One transverse gauge

Specimen
S2.0D

2x1 longitudinal gauge

One each side

increased. The loadslip response of specimen S1.75D-1

shows that the push-out load dipped after an early peak at
about 2 mm slip but then recovered, indicating some macro
effects discussed previously. In the pull-out test that followed, the plug locked into the steel tube with no reversal
slip before peaking at a pull-out load of 330 kN. The shear
transfer then dipped down but recovered partially after reversal of the permanent push-out slip. The locking of the
plug was due to a mechanical interlock mechanism. Specimens S1.75D-2, S1.75-D3, and S2.0D-3 exhibited pinched
hysteretic behaviour and completely failed in the cyclic
loading.
The push-out loadslip curve of specimen S2.0D-1 exhibited a nearly bilinear response prior to peak load (set limitation of the test machine). The change of slope of the load
slip curve during loading was assumed to commence with
the breaking of chemical adhesion (nonslip mechanism) and
activation of the mechanical interlock mechanism (very
small slip mechanism). In the following pull-out test, the
specimen experienced a reversal slip at a load level of 700 kN.
The slip is believed to be a recovery of permanent push-out
2006 NRC Canada

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Fig. 6. Loadslip response in stage 1 of specimens (a) S1.0D-1, (b) S1.0D-2, (c) S1.0D-3, (d) S1.5D-1, (e) S1.5D-2, and (f) S1.5D-3.
800

(d)
1200

600

800
Force (kN)

Force (kN)

(a)

400
200
0

400
0
-400

-200
-800

-400
-600
-8.0

-6.0

-4.0

-2.0 0.0 2.0

Slip (mm)

4.0

6.0

8.0

(b)

-1200
-2.0

(e)
800
Force (kN)

Force (kN)

600
400
200

0.0
Slip (mm)

1.0

2.0

600
400
200
0
-200

0
-200

-400

-400
-2.0

-600
-8.0

0.0

2.0

4.0 6.0 8.0

Slip (mm)

10.0 12.0 14.0

(c)

-6.0

-4.0
-2.0
Slip (mm)

0.0

2.0

(f)
500
400
300

Force (kN)

Force (kN)

-1.0

200
100
0
-100
-200
-300
-2.0

0.0

2.0

4.0
6.0
Slip (mm)

8.0

10.0

12.0

slip. The specimen then showed a load transfer increase as

slip increased before reaching 1000 kN. Specimen S2.0D-2
unexpectedly failed at the first pull-out force of cyclic loading; however, the specimen exhibited a decay shear transfer
after peaking at a slip of 1.01.5 mm.
The loadslip response of the specimens indicated that the
loadslip curves of cyclic loading tests are similar to the
loadslip curve obtained for monotonic static tests. The
shifting between these two curves in the ordinate load axis is
due to the different cyclic loading rate and concrete plug
length. The effects of cycling rate and the cyclic reduction
factor are discussed in the following sections.

Slip versus cycles results for cyclic loading

Cyclic loading reduced the bond strength and ultimate capacity of the specimens. This was due to damage of the concrete plug and pileplug interface either by progressive loss

500
400
300
200
100
0
-100
-200
-300
-400
-500
-4.0

-2.0

0.0

2.0 4.0
Slip (mm)

6.0

8.0

10.0

of stiffness through the accumulation of microcracking or by

progressive plastification that appears as an irreversible residual strain that increases with each additional cycle.
The slip versus cycle behaviour for specimens S1.0D-2,
S1.75D-2, and S2.0D-1 is plotted in Fig. 10. It is evident
that slip increases with an increase in the number of load cycles and that the rate of slip growth increased with an increase in the peak load (see Table 4). The nonsymmetric
behaviour in some specimens may be due to differences in
the local stiffness of the concrete plug adjacent to the test
tube. A concentration of coarse aggregate or voids immediately adjacent to the top or bottom of the steel tube would
have an effect on the concrete stiffness and the rate of slip
growth. The different effective mechanical interlock mechanisms in pull out and push out may also have effects on the
concrete stiffness.
It was observed for most of the specimens that, after the
first few cycles at any load range, the slip appeared to be ap 2006 NRC Canada

Nezamian et al.

119

Fig. 7. Loadslip response for specimens (a) S1.25D-1,

(b) S1.25D-2, and (c) S1.25D-3.
(a)

Fig. 8. Loadslip responses for specimens (a) S1.75D-1,

(b) S1.75D-2, and (c) S1.75D-3.
(a)

400
300
200

F orce ( kN)

F orce ( kN)

500
400
300
200
100
0
-100
-200
-300
-400
-500

100
0
-100
-200
-300
-400
-500

-5

10
Slip (mm)

15

20

25

-15

(b)

(b) 500
400

F orce ( kN)

F orce ( kN)

10

400

200

200
100
0

100
0

-100

-100

-200

-200

-300

-300

-400

-400
-5

10
Slip (mm)

15

20

-15

25

(c)

500

500

400

400

300

F orce ( kN)

(c) 600

F orce ( kN)

-5
Slip (mm)

300

300

300
200
100
0

-10

-5

0
Slip (mm)

10

15

200
100
0

-100

-100

-200

-200

-300

-300
-5

5
10
Slip(mm)

15

20

proximately linear with the number of cycles. A line of best

fit to the rate of slip growth with number of cycles was calculated for every test at every load range. The rate of slip
values and load ranges are presented in Table 4. These results are plotted in Fig. 11, with the rate of slip growth plotted on a logarithmic scale. Although there is considerable
scatter in the data, there is a clear trend that the rate of slip
growth increased with an increase in the peak load. The
scatter in the data is probably a reflection of the variation in
the characteristics of the concrete plug and the effect of
shrinkage. A line of best fit to the data, plotted in Fig. 11,
resulted in the following expression for the rate of slip
growth per cycle for symmetric cyclic loading:
[1]

-10

slip growth per cycle = 10( 0.19P/ Pu

0.054)

mm/cycle

where P is the load, and Pu is the ultimate load.

Various forms of representing the data were trialed, including higher order functions, to fit the trend of the data
given in Fig. 11.

-15

-10

-5

0
5
Slip (mm)

10

15

20

Although a slightly higher correlation could be achieved

using higher order functions, the correlation was not significantly better and, in the absence of a physical model that supports a particular relationship, an exponential function was
adopted as providing a simple function that could consistently
be applied across different data series. Equation [1] does not
strictly satisfy the boundary condition for the rate of slip
growth that when P = 0, the slip growth per cycle could be
zero. This is not possible with an exponential function. The
discrepancy arises because the equation is derived empirically,
and not from the fundamental physical model of the behaviour. When P = Pu, the slip growth per cycle, calculated from
the equation, is finite (but large). This is consistent with the
observed behaviour, namely that the slip does not approach
infinity as the specimen approaches failure.

Cyclic reduction factor

The ultimate capacity and load response of the specimens
under pull-out, push-out, and cyclic loading are presented in
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Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Fig. 9. Loadslip response for specimens (a) S2.0D-1,

(b) S2.0D-2, and (c) S2.0D-3.

Fig. 10. Slip versus number of cycles for specimens (a) S1.0D,
(b) S1.75D-2, and (c) S2.0D-1.

(a)

(a)
0.6

P/Pu = 0.38

0.4
Sl i p (m m )

F orce ( kN)

1000
800
600
400
200
0
-200
-400
-600
-800
-1000
-1.5

P/Pu = 0.23

0.2
0
-0.2
-0.4
-0.6

-1

-0.5

0
0.5
Slip (mm)

1.5

-0.8
0

10
Cycle number

(b)

400

1.0

300

0.5

200
100

P/Pu =0.57
P/Pu = 0.32

P/Pu =0.44

P/Pu = 0.25

P/Pu = 0.38
P/Pu = 0.51
P/Pu = 0.63

-1.0

9
Slip (mm)

12

15

18
-1.5
0

400
300

10

15
20
25
Cycle num ber

30

35

40

(c)
2.5

100

2.0

1.5

-100

1.0

Sl i p (m m )

200
F orce ( kN)

P/Pu = 0.70

-0.5

(c)

20

(b)

Sl i p (m m )

F orce ( kN)

500

15

-200
-300
-400
-15

-10

-5

0
Slip (mm)

10

15

P/Pu=0.50

0.5
0
-0.5
-1.0

P/Pu = 0.55

-1.5
- 2.0

Tables 2 and 3 and Figs. 69. The ultimate capacity and

loadslip response of specimens under the cyclic loading
can be reasonably approximated from the static ultimate
strength and loadslip of the specimen by reducing the ultimate strength values of static testing by the cyclic reduction
factor. The cyclic reduction factor is defined as the factor by
which the cyclic strength of the specimen can be obtained
from the static strength for a given displacement. The cyclic
reduction factor seems to depend on the rate of load, number
of cycles, concrete characteristics and shrinkage, imperfection of the steel tube, length of the plug, and perhaps the
presence of reinforcement. This rule does not apply to all
specimens, however, because of irregular peak loads. These
irregularities might be caused by either steel tube imperfections or the effect of shrinkage. Table 5 shows calculated cyclic reduction factors for specimens with different concrete
plug lengths based on the ultimate pull-out, push-out, and
cyclic strength of specimens. The slip values at the peak
load are also tabulated.

10
Cycle number

15

20

The cyclic reduction factors for the aforementioned 10

specimens indicate that the symmetric cyclic loading reduces
the shearbond transfer between the concrete plug and the
steel tube. This is due to the accumulation of damage to the
plugpile interface. The exceptions to this are specimens
S1.0D-2 and S1.25D-3, possibly because of steel tube imperfections or the effect of shrinkage. An average (mean) cyclic reduction factor of 0.74 was achieved (standard
deviation of 0.25), however.

Bond strength and failure mechanisms

The bond strength of a reinforced concrete plug embedded
in a steel tube is a function of both chemical adhesion of the
steelconcrete interface and mechanical interlock between
the concrete core and the steel surface. To overcome mechanical interlock, a small dilation of the tube occurs as it
2006 NRC Canada

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121

Table 4. Rate of slip growth.

Rate of slip growth (106 mm per cycle)
Specimen No.

Type of test

Load (kN)

P/Pu

Positive slip

Negative slip

S1.0D-2

Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric
Symmetric

150
250
150
250
230
230
400
100
125
150
175
200
225
250
275
150
200
225
500
550
200
250
300

0.23
0.34
0.23
0.34
0.23
0.23
0.34
0.25
0.32
0.38
0.44
0.51
0.57
0.63
0.70
0.38
0.51
0.57
0.50
0.55
0.42
0.52
0.63

4.06
3.91
5.11
19.07
9.68
4.02
75.80
2.19
2.19
4.37
7.66
7.66
13.13
26.25
105.01
0.41
49.51
903.43
25.71
29.69
19.69
33.91
164.09

5.71
8.86
8.64
33.04
9.55
4.08
131.93
2.19
3.28
3.28
3.28
8.75
15.32
33.91
164.09
1.09
99.55
1000.91
33.36
33.91
17.50
26.25
91.89

S1.0D-3
S1.5D-2
S1.5D-3
S1.75D-2

S1.75D-3

S2.0D-1
S2.0D-3

cyclic
cyclic
cyclic
cyclic
cyclic
cyclic
cyclic
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling
cycling

Rat e of slip g row th (mm /cycle)

Fig. 11. Load range versus rate of slip growth. P, load; Pu, ultimate load; R2, coefficient of determination.
0

0.2

Load range, P/Pu

0.4

0.6

0.8

0.1

0.01

0.001
R2 = 0.3905

0.0001

rides over the asperities of the interface, generating radial

contact pressure, which enhances the frictional resistance. In
a push-out situation, dilation of the concrete plug at the top
of the connection enhances radial pressure and therefore
frictional resistance. This is due to the Poissons effect at the
top of specimen, where the compression is high in the concrete and low in the steel. At the base, contact pressure between concrete and steel is reduced, due to the Poissons
effect, and the effective bond is therefore reduced at this location (see Fig. 12).
In the pull-out case, the reverse is expected to occur. That
is, near the base of the concrete plug, contraction of the steel
tube is much higher than that of the concrete core, causing it
to grip the concrete plug. Near the top part of the plug, the
tension force is transferred to the concrete through the reinforcing bars embedded in the concrete core and the pile cap.

The tensile stresses that develop in the concrete core result

in contraction of the concrete, while contraction in the steel
tube is relatively small. This should result in separation between the steel tube and the concrete (Fig. 12). Considering
the fact that deformed bars are used as reinforcement, the
ribs on the bars tend to impart wedge pressure on the outer
concrete layer, causing dilation of this layer. This dilation
enhances the frictional stresses between the steel tube and
the concrete. The test results indicated that the ultimate average bond stress increases with a decrease in the ratio of concrete plug embedment length to tube inner diameter L/Di,
which can also be explained by the aforementioned mechanisms. In stage 2, the shrinkage cracks at the pileplug interface were observed prior to testing, which is believed to
cause a reduction in bond strength and scatter in the test results.
Figure 13 shows measured longitudinal and hoop strains
at the outer surface of the steel tube for specimens S1.0D
and S1.5D in pull-out tests and specimens S1.75D-3 and
S2.0D in push-out tests, which are in a good agreement with
the mechanisms. Longitudinal strains of specimens S1.0D
and S1.5D indicate that the loadshear transfer in the pile
plug interface mainly occurs at the top because of reinforcement wedge action at the top of the specimens and at the
bottom because of the Poissons effect. The test results of
hoop strain along the steel tube indicate that the ribs of the
longitudinal reinforcement tend to impart wedge pressure on
the outer concrete layer, causing dilation of this layer. This
dilation enhances the radial contact pressure and causes radial expansion of the steel tube. At the ultimate load level,
this dilation overcomes the contraction of the steel tube due
to tensile axial force at the top of the specimen. Longitudinal
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Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Table 5. Cyclic reduction factor.

Specimen
No.

Failure regime

Ultimate
strength (kN)

Cyclic ultimate
strength (kN)

Cyclic reduction
factor

Slip at peak
load (mm)

S1.0D-2
S1.0D-3
S1.25D-2
S1.25D-3
S1.5D-2
S1.5D-3
S1.75D-2
S1.75D-3
S2.0D-1
S2.0D-3

Pull out with pre-cyclic loading

Pull out with pre-cyclic loading
Symmetric cycling loading
Pull out with pre-cyclic loading
Pull out with pre-cyclic loading
Pull out with pre-cyclic loading
Symmetric cycling loading
Cycling with pre-pull-out test
Cycling with pre-pull-out test
Symmetric cycling loading

665
665
460
460
1000
1000
395
395
1000
479

711
410
439
540
500
404
300
250
600
350

1.07
0.62
0.95
1.17
0.50
0.40
0.76
0.63
0.60
0.73

12.2
11.7
24.1
20.9
1.8
9.2
14.8
18.6
16.0
18.6

Fig. 12. Bond strength mechanisms.

Push-out Force

High contact pressure

due to the Poisson's effect

High compressive stress in the steel tube

Low compressive stress in concrete

Steel Tube

Concrete
Plug

High compressive stress in concrete

Low compressive stress in the steel tube

Separation
due to the Poisson's effect

Concrete
Plug

Pull-out Force

Separation
due to the Poisson's effect

High tensile stress in concrete

Low tensile stress in the steel tube

High tensile stress in the steel tube

Steel Tube

Low tensile stress in concrete

High contact pressure
due to the Poisson's effect

tube applied a longitudinal bending moment on the tube.

Since the bending of the tube wall is a plane strain environment, it follows that M c = M y in the circumferential ring,
where My is the longitudinal bending moment, and is Poissons ratio for the steel tube. It should be noted that the measured outer longitudinal strain on the steel tube is due to the
axial pull-out force, together with the longitudinal bending
moment along the steel tube (Nezamian et al. 2004).
Figure 14 shows a concrete plug completely pulled out
from the steel tube after the specimen failed in a cyclic test.
The failure mechanism displayed by the specimen was at the
base of the concrete plug, where the contraction of the steel
tube is much greater than that of the concrete core, causing
it to grip the concrete plug. The diagonal tension crack
formed in the concrete layer between the longitudinal reinforcement and the steel tube and then extended to the end of
the longitudinal reinforcement and from there in the hoop
direction. This crack appeared to correspond to a tension
splitting of the concrete plug at ultimate pull-out capacity of
the specimen. The observed damage at the top of the concrete plug also indicated the Poissons effect at the top of the
specimen in the case of push out. These failure mechanisms
were also verified by a nonlinear finite element analysis
(Nezamian et al. 2004). The failure mechanisms are also in
agreement with the described bond strength mechanisms.

Conclusions
strains of specimens S1.75D and S2.0D show very small
shear transfer between the concrete plug and the steel tube at
the bottom of the specimens and maximum shear transfer at
the top of the specimens due to the Poissons effect.
It should be noted that the steel tube was subjected to radial contact forces along an arbitrary circle of the tube. Because of the symmetry of such loading, every section normal
to the axis will remain circular, and the radius R will undergo a change R = y, varying along the length of the plug.
The radial displacement y can be regarded as deflection for a
longitudinal element of the tube, and hence it is seen that the
assumed loading will set up bending stresses in the longitudinal elements. This situation is analogous to the case of a
beam on an elastic foundation (Hetnyni 1964). It can be
seen that mechanical macro interlock mechanisms at the top
and bottom of specimens caused the radial pressure on the
steel tube. The differential of radial pressure along the steel

An experimental study was conducted to investigate the

behaviour and bond strength of concrete plugs embedded in
tubular steel piles under cyclic loading. Based on this study,
the following conclusions are drawn:
(1) Average ultimate bond strengths of 4.25 MPa for a static
load and 2.77 MPa for a cyclic load were achieved for
stage 1, and an average static bond strength of 2.37 MPa
and average cyclic bond strength of 1.70 MPa were
achieved for stage 2. The higher bond strengths than
those reported by Virdi and Dowling (1975) and ShakirKhalil (1991, 1993a, 1993b) are due to the presence of
reinforcement and the use of a smaller ratio of concrete
plug embedment length to tube inner diameter, L/Di.
The observed shrinkage of the concrete plug at stage 2
is believed to cause a reduction in bond strength, which
is in agreement with the findings of Virdi and Dowling
(1975) and Roeder et al. (1999).
2006 NRC Canada

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123

Fig. 13. Longitudinal strain of specimens S1.0D (a) and S1.5D (c) at ultimate pull out and S1.75D-3 (e) and S2.0D (g) at ultimate push
out, and hoop strain of specimens S1.0D (b) and S1.5D (d) at ultimate pull out and S1.75D-3 (f) and S2.0D (h) at ultimate push out.
(b)

0.0004
0.0003
0.0003
0.0002
0.0002

0.0000
-0.0001

Hoo p Strain
( Microstrain)

L on git udinal Strain

( Microstrain)

(a)

0.0001
0.0001
0.0000
-0.0001
-0.0001

-0.0001
-0.0002
-0.0002
-0.0003
-0.0003
-0.0004
-0.0004

0
50
100
150
200
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)
(d)

0.0007
0.0006
0.0005
0.0004
0.0003
0.0002
0.0001
0.0000
-0.0001
-0.0002

0.0000
-0.0001

Hoo p Strain
( Microstrain)

L on git udinal Strain

( Microstrain)

(c)

0
50
100
150
200
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

-0.0001
-0.0002
-0.0002
-0.0003

0
50
100
150 200
250 300
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)
(f)

0.0002
0.0000
-0.0002

Hoo p Strain
( Microstrain)

L on git udinal Strain

( Microstrain)

(e)

0
50
100
150
200
250
300
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

-0.0004
-0.0006
-0.0008
-0.0010
-0.0012

0.0005
0.0005
0.0004
0.0004
0.0003
0.0003
0.0002
0.0002
0.0001
0.0001
0.0000

-50
50
150
250
350
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

(h)

0.0000

0.0012
0.0010

-0.0005

Hoo p Strain
( Microstrain)

L on git udinal Strain

( Microstrain)

(g)

-50
50
150
250
350
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

-0.0010
-0.0015
-0.0020
-0.0025

0.0008
0.0006
0.0004
0.0002

-0.0030

0.0000
-50
50
150
250
350
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

450

(2) The push-out and pull-out tests conducted under symmetric cyclic loading demonstrated that slip between the
concrete plug and the steel tube increased with repeated
loading, and the rate of slip growth increased with an
increase in the peak load.
(3) Empirical relationships between the load and the rate of
slip growth for symmetric cyclic loading were obtained
from the experimental data as follows:

-50
50
150
250
350
Distance from the bottom of the plug (mm)

[1]

450

slip growth per cycle

= 10( 0.19P/ Pu

0.054)

mm/cycle

This equation may be used to predict the failure of the

specimen due to incremental slip between the concrete
plug and the steel tube.
(4) The ultimate capacity and loadslip response of specimens under cyclic loading can be reasonably approxi 2006 NRC Canada

124

Can. J. Civ. Eng. Vol. 33, 2006

Fig. 14. Pulled out concrete plug from the steel tube: (a) complete plug, (b) top of plug, and (c) bottom of plug.

(a)

(b)

(c)

mated from the static ultimate strength and loadslip of

the specimen by reducing the ultimate strength values of
the static test by the cyclic reduction factor. An average
cyclic reduction factor of 0.74 was achieved.
(5) The loadslip curves of the specimens showed a nearly
bilinear response. The change of slope of the loadslip
curves during loading is assumed to occur with the
breaking of the microchemical adhesion and the activation of the mechanical macro interlocking mechanism.

The main mechanism that is believed to have contributed to the bond strength in pull out was the dilation of
the concrete due to the wedging action exerted by the
deformed steel bars against the concrete layer between
the bars and the steel tube. This dilation increased the
contact pressure, which enhanced the friction resistance.
A secondary factor was the pronounced Poissons ratio
effect increasing the radial contact stress at the base of
the concrete plug.
(6) Further tests are required to account for variations in
some parameters such as steel tube diameter and aspect
ratio, concrete strength, and steel tube surface condition.
Tests are also needed using different cyclic load regimes. A more detailed investigation of the effect of
concrete shrinkage on the ultimate pull-out strength is
also required.

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