Proposal

STRUCTURAL DEPTH

It was found in Technical Report 2 that the existing composite steel system at the office levels of KT36A is the most expensive structural system of the analyzed existing and alternative systems. The proposed thesis work for the spring semester of 2013 will replace the existing steel system with reinforced concrete to make the entire building reinforced concrete, flat slab construction. It is anticipated that this will lead to a reduced overall building cost. Gravity system and lateral system elements will be redesigned at the office levels while the existing columns at the parking levels and foundations will also be analyzed for adequacy to complete the redesign of the structure. If necessary, existing elements will be redesigned if they are deemed inadequate in the analysis. A structural model created in ETABS will be used to supplement the design of the gravity system and will be used heavily in the design of the lateral system.

The main goal of this thesis work is to learn more about advanced computer modeling of structures through designing the building against progressive collapse. Once the preliminary concrete redesign is complete, effects of progressive collapse inducing events will be analyzed using SAP2000 to aid in the design process based on guidelines given by the United States General Services Administration (GSA) and the Unified Facilities Criteria (UFC).

SITE LAYOUT REDESIGN (Breadth 1)

One of the best ways to protect against a progressive collapse situation is to reduce the risk of it happening in the first place. This is accomplished through site layouts that minimize potential risks such as explosions and vehicular impacts through strategic site logistics and landscape architecture. Modifications will be made to the existing site plan for Kingstowne 36A to minimize the potential risks. The modifications can include, but are not limited to; increasing stand-off distance, installing barriers, and employing energy deflection shields. The modified site plan will be presented showing the measures taken to create a safer building perimeter.

BUILDING ENVELOPE AND FAÇADE STUDY (Breadth 2)

Kingstowne 36A is currently clad in a precast-concrete panel, combined with thermal glass and plain glass, façade. This system, however, is most likely not resistant to blast loading. Cladding the building in a blast resistant façade will help to further mitigate the risks that can potentially cause a progressive collapse scenario. The current system will be evaluated with a heat transfer and performance analysis to determine the effectiveness of the façade. This analysis will then be used as the basis to design an alternative façade system that is blast resistant. An additional goal to obtain with the new façade system is to, at a minimum, match the performance of the existing façade.

MAE INTEGRATION

To meet the MAE curriculum requirements for the proposed senior thesis, knowledge and skills acquired from AE 530, Computer Modeling of Building Structures; AE 538, Earthquake Engineering; and AE 542, Building Enclosure Science and Design will be applied. Redesign of the existing structure to entirely cast-in-place concrete construction will be modeled in ETABS to aid in the analysis and design of the structure. Design methods presented in AE 538 will be used to design the new shear walls that will be added and determine if the existing shear walls have enough capacity to resist the seismic loads, considering seismic loads are expected to control the lateral design due to the increased weight of the structure. Material covered in AE 542 will be used to evaluate the existing façade system and design a replacement that is blast resistant.

Note: While great efforts have been taken to provide accurate and complete information on the pages of CPEP, please be aware that the information contained herewith is considered a work-in-progress for this thesis project. Modifications and changes related to the original building designs and construction methodologies for this senior thesis project are solely the interpretation of James Chavanic. Changes and discrepancies in no way imply that the original design contained errors or was flawed. Differing assumptions, code references, requirements, and methodologies have been incorporated into this thesis project; therefore, investigation results may vary from the original design.