China Completes World's Only 10,000-ton Plump Load Six DOF Engineering Equipment

China State Construction Technical Center, a subsidiary of China State Construction Engineering Corporation (CSCEC) recently completed construction of CSCEC's 10,000-ton multipurpose experimental system after 10 years of research and development.

As the system has gone into operation, it is now the world's only six-degree-of-freedom (DOF) engineering equipment with a plump loading capacity of more than 10,000 tons.

The equipment can be used in full scale construction of large and complicated structures in domestic and overseas projects, avoiding weak loading capacity and lack of space to help operators monitor the real stress state and mechanical property of the structure.

Outstanding testing capacity

The equipment has outstanding loading capacity and ample loading space.

Its plump loading capacity is 10,800 tons, the largest of its kind in the world.

The loading can be realized in six degrees of freedom through multi-path control technology and the 18 actuators installed on the loading platform.

As for the loading space, the equipment has a 9.1-meter long, 6.6-meter wide and 10-meter high experimental space, which is the largest in the world. It is also the only machine of its kind capable of joint load testing of several full-scale isolation bearings.

Technically supporting building structure tests, equipment design and manufacturing

Engineering structure experiments and examinations are main approaches to developing a theory of sizing calculation. They play a key role in testing mechanical property and basic computing methods of different types of structures and component as well as design and construction of long-span, ultra-high and complicated structures.

With world-leading performances in loading capacity and six DOF design, CSCEC's equipment provides strong technical supports to major projects in design, construction and manufacturing of necessary equipment as well as full-scale testing of various engineering structures.

Promoting industrial technological innovation

A piece of major testing equipment widely used in civil engineering structures of bridges, tunnels, railways, roads, houses and dams, CSCEC's multipurpose experimental system can also test the stress levels of structures under different conditions, which will promote technical reform and industrial revolution in the engineering structure field.

In traditional construction projects, finite element analysis and small-scale tests were often used as a design basis in structure design as there was no matching equipment to test extremely heavy components of ultra-high buildings.

However, such references can hardly reflect the real mechanical properties of a component.

The newly developed equipment can provide accurate and highly efficient testing data for structure design and engineering, which is a technical advantage of the company.

The equipment is also a big part of full scale loading capacity of such infrastructure projects as large dams, bridges and tunnels.

In addition to offering safe, reliable, economical and innovative technical support, the equipment can also carry out full scale loading testing of a 2-meter diameter isolation bearing or several bearings at one time, which is proof of China's progress in isolation and damping technology and a technical advance in earthquake resistance and disaster prevention.

Strong development team

The equipment's development team included more than 10 members with doctoral degrees and over 20 with master degrees from universities such as Tsinghua University, Tongji University and Harbin Institute of Technology.

A consulting team of academicians of the Chinese Academy of Engineering as well as experts and professors of universities and colleges and enterprises also contributed to the development.

Deng Zongquan, one of those academicians, said the experimental equipment integrated mechanics, electronics and hydraulics in a major scientific breakthrough.

So far, the equipment is scheduled to carry out trial operations in various fields including construction, infrastructure and energy power engineering with several enterprises around the world.

China State Construction Technical Center, the initiator of the equipment, will continue to focus on industrial technology research to improve practical use of the experimental system and aim to build an open and international experimental platform for all industries.

(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)