On-site Experimental Testing to Study the Vibration of Composite Floors

摘要

As a general trend, in order to reduce material consumption or the mass of the structures, composite floor solution is used in the case of large span floor slabs. This solution leads to floors sensitive to vibrations generally induced by human activities. As a verification of the design concepts of the composite floors, usually it a further examination of the floor after its completion by experimental tests is recommended. Although the experimental values of the dynamic response of the floor are uniquely determined, the processing of the experimental results can take two directions of evaluation. The first direction consists in determining the dynamic characteristics of the floor and comparing them with the design values. The second direction is to consider the human comfort and perception to the floors vibration. The paper aims to present a case study on a composite floor with concrete slab and steel beams tested on-site. Both aspects of the data processing are analyzed, namely the structural characteristics and the effect on human perception and comfort. Experimentally obtained values for the dynamic characteristics of the floor are compared with numerical values from finite element analysis, while the second type of characteristic values are compared with various human comfort limit values given in international standards.