Пособия / Л.П. Даниленко, Ю.Ю. Сильман TECHNICAL ENGLISH FOR CIVIL ENGINEERS AND STRUCTURAL DESIGNERS

volume of construction is gradually reduced. However, the use of high-strength brick, reinforced masonry i.e. masonry structures reinforced with steel bars or concrete elements can significantly increase the carrying capacity of buildings with stone walls. The use of brick masonry and ceramic prefabricated panels greatly increases the degree of industrialization of construction and reduces the complexity of the construction of buildings from stone materials.

The main direction in the development of modern timber structures includes the construction of buildings from the glulam i.e. – laminated timber*. Possibility of industrial manufacturing and obtaining the necessary dimensions of structural components by gluing* determine their advantages compared to other wooden structures. Carrying and protecting glued structures are widely used in agricultural construction.

Notes:

masonry structure – каменная конструкция

framed structure – рамная/решетчатая конструкция shell structure – оболочковая конструкция

tension structure – натяжная конструкция pneumatic structure – пневматическая/надувная

конструкция

curved surface – изогнутая/искривленная поверхность anchor structure – анкерная опора

waterworks – водопроводная станция; фонтан tanks – резервуар

silos – бункер

inaccessible areas – труднодоступные территории laminated timber – клееная древесина

to glue – склеивать

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EXERCISES

Ex. 1. Match English and Russian equivalents, defining the types of structures.

Ex. 2. Give the English for:

Плита перекрытия, каменные стены и перегородки, анкерная опора, нагрузка от собственного веса, дорожное покрытие, значительное преимущество, гористая местность, территории с высокой сейсмической активностью, труднодоступные территории, конструкции из клееной древесины, высокопрочный кирпич, общий объем строительства, укрепить стальными прутьями, снизить трудоемкость, увеличить несущую мощность, использовать в сельскохозяйственном секторе.

Ex. 3. Give the answers to these questions.

1.What does the classification of structures in engineering depend on?

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2.How are all the structures divided according to the way of resisting loads?

3.What are types of structuresaccordingto the material used for their construction?

4.Which of them are mostly used in modern construction?

5.What is the main advantage of steel structures compared with reinforced concrete structures?

6.What are the advantages of glulam-laminated timber structures compared to ordinary wooden structures?

7.Does the use of masonry structures increase?

8.What structures are advisable to build in mountainous, desert and seismically dangerous areas? Why?

Task. Read and translate the text using the dictionary.

TEXT 2. STEEL FRAMES

Steel framing is a construction technique that uses steel supports to form the basic shape, or “skeleton” of a building. The steel frame provides structural support for other building elements, including siding, roof, floors, walls, and the weight of occupants. Steel framing is an alternative to other construction methods, including wood framing. The development of this technique made the construction of skyscrapers possible.

A steel frame is comprised of vertical members, known as columns, as well as horizontal members, or girders. Both columns and girders are typically made from I-beams*, which are steel beams shaped like the capitalized letter “I”. The shape

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of an I-beam provides superior strength and structural support for the other elements of the building.

Building elements that are not subjected to high loads may be formed from steel pipes or tubes, which weigh less than I-beams. Because of their high strength steel joists, or trusses are often used to build roof supports. These elements are joined together using bolts, rivets* or welding techniques to ensure a strong connection.

Steel structure

Most steel structures are done with a type of steel called mild steel*. Mild steel is a material that is extremely strong. This huge strength is of great advantage to buildings. The other important feature of steel framing is its flexibility. It can bend without cracking, which is another great advantage, as a steel building can flex when it is pushed them from side to side by wind, or an earthquake. The third characteristic of steel is its plasticity or ductility. This means that when subjected to great

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force, it will not suddenly crack like glass, but slowly bend out of shape. This property allows steel buildings to bend out of shape, or deform, thus giving warning to inhabitants to escape. Failure in steel frames is not sudden – a steel structure rarely collapses. Thanks to these properties steel in most cases performs far better in earthquake than most other materials.

However one important property of steel is that it quickly loses its strength in a fire. At 500 °С (930° F), mild steel can lose almost half of its strength. This is what happened at the collapse of the World Trade Towers in 2001 (New York). Therefore, steel in buildings must be protected from fire or high temperature; this is usually done by wrapping it with boards or spray-on material called fire protection.

The frame needs to be protected from fire because steel softens at high temperature and this can cause the building to partial collapse. The columns are usually encased* by masonry, concrete or plasterboard*. The beams may be encased by concrete, plasterboard or sprayed with a coating to insulate them from the heat of the fire. Bricks, stone, reinforced concrete, architectural glass, sheet metal and simply paint are used to cover the frame in order to protect the steel from bad weather.

Notes:

I-beams – двутавровая балка rivets – заклепки

mild steel – строительная сталь

to encase – полностью закрывать, обрамлять, вставлять plasterboard – сухая штукатурка

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EXERCISES

Ex. 1. Give the definitions for the terms:

steel framing

skeleton of a building

skyscraper

column

girder

I-beam

rivet

mild steel

deformation

crack

collapse

Ex. 2. Choose the phrase in the text to complete the sentences below.

1.A construction technique which uses steel supports to make a skeleton of a structure is called…

2.Vertical members comprised in steel framing are known as…

3.Horizontal members comprised in steel framing are called…

4.Steel can be protected from bad weather by…

5.Steel can be protected from fire by…

6.Flexibility of steel structures means…

7.Ductility of steel structures means…

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Ex. 3. Translate the following sentences into English.

1.Строительство небоскребов стало возможнымблагодаря применению стальных каркасов.

2.Колонны и фермы обычно делают из стальных двутавровых балок.

3.Для большей части стальных конструкций используетсяисключительно прочный материал– строительная сталь.

4.Сталь не выносит высоких температур, поэтому стальные конструкции должны иметь надежную противопожарную защиту.

5.При температуре выше 500º даже сверхнадежная сталь теряет до половины своей прочности.

6.Каменная кладка, бетон, сухая штукатурка обычно служат изолирующим средством, защищая стальные конструкции от пожара.

Task. Give the written translation of the text.

TEXT 2a. THE USE OF STEEL FRAME STRUCTURES

ͯ

Let us consider a single-storey building with 5×8 m. in dimension. Let us first build the structure with four columns at the corners, beams spanning between the columns, and a 150 mm ͯthick concrete slab at the top using concrete. Such structure would weigh about 800 kg/m², or 32 tons i.e. 32.000 kg in total. If we built the same structure using steel instead of concrete, with a sloping roof covered with corrugated metal sheeting (обшивка из рифленого металла) with insulation, it would

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weigh only about 65 kg/m². The steel framed building will weigh only 2.6 tons i.e. 2.600 kg. So the concrete building is over 12 times heavier! This example is given for single-storey structures. In multi-storey structures, the difference will be less, as the floors in multi-storey steel buildings are built of concrete slabs for economy – but the difference is still significant.

This low weight of steel frame buildings means that they have to be firmly bolted to the foundations to resist wind forces; otherwise they could be blown away like deck(терраса, большая лоджия)umbrellas!

Steel construction is mostly often used in:

high rise buildings because of its strength, low weight, and speed of construction;

industrial and warehouse buildings becauseof its ability to createlarge span spacesat lowcost;

residential buildings in a technique called light steel construction;

temporary structures as these are quick to set up and remove.

Advantages of steel structures:

they are super-quick to build at site, as a lot of work can be pre-fabricated at the factory;

they are flexible, that makes them very good at resisting dynamic (changing) forces such as wind or earthquake forces;

a wide range of ready-made structural sections are available, such as I, C, and angle sections;

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they can be made to take any kind of shape, and used with any type of material;

a wide range of joining methods is available, such as bolting, welding, and riveting (заклёпочные работы).

Disadvantages of steel structures:

they lose strength at high temperatures, and are subjected to fire;

they are subjected to corrosion in humid or marine environment.

EXERCISES

Ex. 1. Make a list of advantages of steel frame structures. Ex. 2. Make a list of their main disadvantages.

Ex. 3. List the types of buildings where steel framing is used. Ex. 4. Say if the sentences given below are true or false.

1.Steel frame construction is fast and rather cheap.

2.A steel structure is many times heavier than a concrete structure.

3.Prefabrication makes construction super-quick.

4.Flexibility of steel structures prevents them to resist earthquakes and high winds.

5.Steel structures are not subjected to fire and corrosion.

6.There are different techniques of assembling steel structures.

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