Testing the Timber : EPS Concrete Composite Structures

This paper presents the results of the numeric and laboratory tests of the "T" section of EPS concrete-timber composite ceiling structures. Sheared connections of EPS concrete board and timber girder elements have been tested in several different ways by means of mechanical connectors. Various types of dowels were used for sheared connections. Shearing forces in the connection plane were assumed by means of dowels, then by means of nails, and by gluing the connection of EPS concrete and timber with epoxy glue. All the tests were numerically modelled by means of FEA software COSMOS/M 2.8 and the results were compared with those of the laboratory tests. Application of these structures in civil engineering practice is multiple, particularly in reconstruction of old timber girder floor structures or manufacture of new ones at the reconstruction of old buildings in areas exposed to frequent earthquakes.