Timber Concrete Composite Testing

To support the ambitious Timber Concrete Composite (TCC) “slab band” design proposed by Fast + Epp for Limberlost Place (formerly called The Arbour), a robust testing program was completed to determine the out of plane shear capacity of TCC panels, the capacity of three types of shear flow connectors, the ultimate flexural resistance of the panels, torsional behavior of the panels, and the vibration performance of such a system.

Working with the University of Northern British Columbia, Fast + Epp and the Lab Team completed a series of monotonic load tests. 18 small scale tests were completed on steel kerf plate connectors, 24 half scale tests (4.6m) were completed on various connectors and reinforcement ratios to investigate out of plane shear capacity, and 9 full scale (9.2m) tests were completed to verify the ultimate capacity of the panels in regular bending as well as torsional bending. Vibration testing was also completed on the full-scale specimens. This represents the most statistically robust and largest ever testing structural program undertaken by Fast + Epp or UNBC.

This physical testing was completed in the summer of 2020. The information and data gleaned from this testing program ultimately informed final design decisions and modification on Limberlost Place, which is now moving into construction.

Conference Papers

• ASCE 2022 – Cross-Laminated Timber Concrete Composite Systems for Long-Span Floors
• ASCE 2022 – The Arbour: An Innovative Composite Floor System
• CSCE 2021 – Performance of Cross-Laminated Timber – Concrete Composite Systems with Steel Kerf Plates
• CSCE 2021 – Experimental Investigations of Full-Scale Cross-Laminated Timber Concrete Composite Systems
• WTCE 2020 – Experimental Investigations of Reinforced Cross-Laminated Timber-Concrete Composite Systems 
• IABSE 2022 – Steel Kerf Plate Solution for Cross-Laminated Timber-Concrete Composite Systems

Publications

• Construction and Building Materials, Volume 319 – CLT Concrete Composite Floors with Steel Kerf Plate Connectors