Environmental Factors Affecting the Dynamic Response of Composite Steel-Concrete Beams

This paper presents a long term experimental study to quantify changes in dynamic response due to a long term loading and varying temperature effects. The experimental study is set up for one year. Two types of blind bolt connectors were used as shear connection systems in steel-concrete composite beams alongside a welded shear stud system and a non composite beam. Two questions are answered; firstly, do composite steel-concrete composite beams experience a change in frequency and/or mode shape due to environmental factors. Secondly, for identical specimens, does the type of shear connection system used change the extent to which environmental factors affect the frequency of the specimens. The results indicated that the dynamic behaviour is affected by both the load and changes in environmental factors over the course of the year as expected. The extent of the effect is dependent on which type of shear connector is used.