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In precast technology, the effective design and construction are related to the behaviour of the connections between the structural members in order to cater for all service, environmental and earthquake load conditions. Therefore, the design and detailing of the connections should be undertaken consistently and with awareness of the desired structural response. In the research presented herein, an analytical expression is proposed for the prediction of the resistance of precast pinned connections under shear monotonic and cyclic loading. The proposed formula addresses the case where the failure of the connection occurs with simultaneous flexural failure of the dowel and compression failure of the concrete around the dowel, expected to occur either when (i) adequate concrete cover of the dowels is provided ( d > 6 D) or (ii) adequate confining reinforcement (as defined in the article) is foreseen around the dowels in the case of small concrete covers ( d < 6 D). The expression is calibrated against available experimental data and numerical results derived from a nonlinear numerical investigation. Emphasis is given to identifying the effect of several parameters on the horizontal shear resistance of the connection such as: the number and diameter of the dowels; the strength of materials (concrete, grout, steel); the concrete cover of the dowels; the thickness of the elastomeric pad; the type of shear loading (monotonic or cyclic); the pre-existing axial stress in the dowels; and the rotation of the joint. In addition, recommendations for the design of precast pinned beam-to-column connections are given, especially when the connections are utilised in earthquake resistant structures. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] more...

Serum haptoglobin phenotypes were studied in 100 Greek patients suffering from duodenal ulcer by vertical starch gel electrophoresis. A sample of 2026 healthy subjects served as control. No statistically significant differences were found in Hp phenotypes and gene frequencies between patients and healthy controls. more...

Measurement of serum lipids in 75 patients on regular haemodialysis showed that they had a higher mean serum triglyceride level than normal subjects. Cholesterol levels were not significantly different. Amongst haemodialysis patients men had higher serum triglycerides than women and women had higher cholesterol levels than men, a situation analogous to that found in normal subjects. In men, serum triglycerides correlated with percent body fat and treatment with Sustanon 250(R) intramuscularly weekly caused a significant rise. more...