Burj Khalifa Dubai

Burj Khalifa

Burj Khalifa known as Burj Dubai prior to its inauguration, is a skyscraper in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and is currently the tallest man made structure in the world, at 829.84 m (2,723 ft). Construction of Burj Khalifa began on 21 September 2004, with the exterior of the structure completed on 1 October 2009.

Burj Khalifa

  Burj Khalifa officially opened on 4 January 2010, and is part of the new 2 km² (490-acre) flagship development called Downtown Dubai at the 'First Interchange' along Sheikh Zayed Road, near Dubai's main business district. The tower's architecture and engineering were performed by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill of Chicago, with Adrian Smith as chief architect, and Bill Baker as chief structural engineer. The primary contractor was Samsung C&T of South Korea.

Burj Khalifa

The total cost for the project was about US$1.5 billion; and for the entire "Downtown Dubai" development, US$20 billion. In March 2009, Mohamed Ali Alabbar, chairman of the project's developer, Emaar Properties, said office space pricing at  Burj Khalifa  reached US$4,000 per sq ft (over US$43,000 per m²) and the Armani Residences, also in  Burj Khalifa , sold for US$3,500 per sq ft (over US$37,500 per m²).

Burj Khalifa's completion coincided with the global financial crisis of 2007–2010, and with vast overbuilding in the country, led to high vacancies and foreclosures. With Dubai mired in debt from its huge ambitions, the government was forced to seek multi billion dollar bailouts from its oil rich neighbor Abu Dhabi. Subsequently, in a surprise move at its opening ceremony, the tower was renamed  Burj Khalifa , said to honour the UAE President Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan for his crucial support.

Due to the slumping demand in Dubai's property market, the rents in the  Burj Khalifa  plummeted 40% some ten months after its opening. Out of 900 apartments in the tower, around 825 were still empty at that time.

Burj Khalifa Pic Gallery

Courtesy By: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burj_Khalifa

Taj Mahal Agra

TAJ MAHAL

Taj Mahal of India - "the epitome of love", "a monument of immeasurable beauty". The beauty of this magnificent monument is such that it is beyond the scope of words. The thoughts that come into the mind while watching the  Taj Mahal of Agra is not just its phenomenal beauty, but the immense love which was the reason behind its construction. Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan got this  Taj Mahal constructed in the memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, with whom he fell in love at the first sight. Ironically, the very first sight of the Taj Mahal, the epitome of love and romance, also leaves visitors mesmerized and perpetually enthralled.

Standing majestically on the banks of River Yamuna, the  Taj Mahal is synonymous to love and romance. It is believed that the name " Taj Mahal" was derived from the name of Shah Jahan's wife, Mumtaz Mahal and means "Crown Palace". The purity of the white marble, the exquisite ornamentation, precious gemstones used and its picturesque location, all make a visit to the  Taj Mahal gain a place amongst the most sought-after tours in the world. However, until you know the love story behind the construction of the  Taj Mahal , the beauty of the same would not enliven in your heart and mind and instead would come up as just another beautiful building/monument. It is the love behind this outstanding monument that has given a life to this monument. Come and explore the visceral charisma that it emanates!

Taj Mahal 

Interior Work of Taj Mahal

Interior Work of Taj Mahal

Courtesy By: http://www.tajmahal.org.uk/

Effect of Seismic Demand on Skew Bridge

I found this research article very interesting and useful for most bridge engineers who are working on the bridge design and retrofitting to mitigate the severe effects from Earthquake. The research title and video are "Seismic Displacement Demands on Skewed Bridge Decks Supported on Elastomeric Bearings" The research is introduced and conducted by Prof. Oh-Sung Kwon from U of Toronto, Canana.

Since this type of the bridge is most famous and constructed most in many countries including Thailand due to the feasibility in the construction and economy, the understanding in the behavior of the bridges during Earthquake is very important. Moreover, the current code of practice used in many countries is still very limited e.g. AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specification to design this type of skewed bridge subjected to Earthquake. This research is thus very useful in the near future.

In this blog, I will collect more useful information regarding to behavior, design, and analysis of this type of bridges in series starting with the research by Prof. Kwon and will share with you. Please inform me your comments and share your experience about the seismic design of skewed bridges.

The following animation shows the seismic response of a skew bridge. Elastomeric bearings are modeled with elements which can simulate the effects of normal force on sliding resistance. Due to vertical component of input ground motion, the normal force on elastomeric bearings constantly varies affecting sliding resistance. Hysteretic response of elastomeric bearings and abutment (left four figures), and animation of deck displacement (right top) and bridge bearing (right middle) are presented. Based on analyses of two sets of motions, the tentative conclusions are 1) skew angle increases rotational seismic demand, 2) skew angle does not have much effect on displacement demand in skew direction but largely increases displacement demand in the direction normal to abutment, 3) pulse-type near fault motions have much more significant effects than far-fault motions.