Riyad S. Aboutaha
Associate Professor
Professor Aboutaha is an associate professor of civil engineering at Syracuse University. After graduating from Beirut Arab University in 1981, he worked for over seven years in the construction industry. He then went on to receiving both his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 1991 & 1994, respectively. He began his teaching career at Georgia Tech, and joined the faculty at Syracuse University in 1998. In 2002, he was elected Fellow of the American Concrete Institute (ACI). Dr. Aboutaha’s teaching interests are in the field of structural concrete analysis and design, and rehabilitation of civil infrastructure. In recent years, he directed several educational workshops for the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) on bridge rehabilitation with carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites. His research interests include evaluation and rehabilitation of concrete bridges with CFRP composites, durability of FRP bridge decks, and investigation of structural failures.
Research Interests
Smart Reinforced Concrete Buildings:
In seismic regions, during a major seismic event, well designed reinforced concrete buildings frames develop plastic hinges at beam ends. Formation of plastic hinges at these locations may result in an overall instability of concrete frames due to its proximity to the beam-column joint. This project focuses on the use of headed reinforcement bars for relocating potential plastic hinge regions away from the beam-column joints. It offers a very practical, cost effective solution for reinforced concrete building frames is seismic regions.
Ductility of CFRP Strengthened Concrete Girders:
Carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) composites are very effective in retrofitting concrete girders with inadequate flexural strength. However, the mode of failure of CFRP strengthened girders is very brittle due to sudden delamination or tension-shear failure in the concrete cover. End anchorages could be utilized to enhance the ductility of CFRP strengthened concrete girders. This project exams several types of CFRP end anchorages including transverse and diagonal anchorages.
Development of National Guide for Retrofit of Concrete Bridges with CFRP Composites:
In this project, a very comprehensive guide for retrofit of concrete bridges with CFRP composites was developed. The guide includes detailed section on deterioration of concrete bridges in corrosive environment, non-destructive testing and evaluation, and analysis and design of CFRP strengthened concrete bridge components. The guide also covers seismic retrofit of concrete bridge columns. A total of thirteen detailed design examples are also presented.
Durability of Wearing Surfaces for FRP Bridge Decks
Fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) composite bridge decks are very attractive alternative to conventional bridge decks due to their high strength to weight ratio and chemical resistance. However, due to their smooth surface, a wearing surface is needed to provide safe skid resistance under traffic loads. This project investigates several types of wearing surface materials including polymer modified concrete, polymer concrete, polymer asphalt, and superpave. As a result of this project, a new hybrid wearing surface system was developed.
Teaching Interests
Rehabilitation of Civil Infrastructure, Bridge Engineering, Behavior and Design of Reinforced and Prestressed Concrete Structures, Mechanics of Materials, Structural Analysis
Recent Publications
Wattanadechachan, P., Aboutaha, R.S., Hag-Elsafi, O., and Alampalli, S., “Thermal Compatibility and Durability of Wearing Surfaces on FRP Bridge Decks,” ASCE Journal of Bridge Engineering, 11(4), July-August, 2006.
Park SangDon, and Aboutaha, R.S., “Finite Element Methodologies for FRP Strengthened RC Members,” Journal of Computers and Concrete, Korea, October-November issue, 2006.
SangHun Kim, and Aboutaha, R.S., “Ductility of Carbon Fiber-Reinforced Polymer (CFRP) Strengthened Reinforced Concrete Beams: Experimental Research,” Steel and Composite Structures, An International Journal, Korea, October, 2004.
Chutarat, N., Aboutaha, R.S., “Cyclic Response of Exterior Reinforced Concrete Beam- Column Joints Reinforced with Headed Bars,” American Concrete Institute, ACI Structural Journal, 100(2), March-April, 2003, pp. 259-264.
Aboutaha, R.S., and Machado, R. I., “Seismic Resistance of Steel Tubed High Strength Reinforced Concrete Columns," Journal of Structural Division, ASCE, 1999.