SS-DSC: Stainless steel-concrete composite beams with stainless-steel demountable shear connectors for sustainable infrastructure

This project will assess the structural behaviour of steel-concrete composite beams (for buildings or bridges) that have stainless-steel steel sections connected to precast concrete slabs with demountable connectors.

Composite bridges made of stainless-steel material will have a significantly greater durability, they will not be prone to corrosion, and they will require less maintenance. The concrete decks will be easily replaced, if needed, with minimum downtime and disruption to traffic.

In addition, all components will be reusable at the and of life of a bridge or building, which is in line with a circular economy model and will help to achieve the net-zero target in the construction sector.

The composite beams will be assessed through a series of experimental tests in the Labs and advanced numerical simulations.

Life cycle assessment tools will be utilized to evaluate the life-cycle costs and environmental performance of the proposed composite beams.