Nonlinear Solution for Folded Plate Structures

A nonlinear solution for reinforced concrete folded plate structures is presented which is valid for the entire loading spectrum to failure of the structure. The solution uses numerical methods to incorporate the nonlinear stress-strain behavior of concrete and steel into a computational procedure which is basically the iterative method of folded plate analysis. The observed behavior of a reinforced concrete folded plate structure tested at Syracuse University was compared with behaviors predicted by the numerical solution, by the ordinary linear theory of folded plate structures, and by simple cracked reinforced concrete beam theory. The behavior predicted by the numerical solution correlated reasonably well with the observed behavior of the system, and this solution appeared to predict the actual behavior better than the other theories. However, the accuracy of the numerical solution was not significantly better than that of the reinforced concrete beam theory.