Structural integrity is an engineering discipline that ensures that a structure or structural component is suitable for the purpose under normal operating conditions. It also helps guarantee that a building is safe.
Moreover, structural integrity ensures that a building can maintain its weight while avoiding deformation, breakage, and catastrophic failure. In other words, it covers the investigation of previous structural failures to prevent problems in future designs.
Reddy Kancharla believes that integrity is more than just good design. It must be present throughout the construction. Therefore, regular examination and maintenance become crucial for engineers to guarantee that structures are secure, dependable, and serve their intended function.
Reddy Kancharla believes that it is vital that engineers analyze a material's mechanical qualities before determining the size and form required to sustain the intended load. Materials must be rigid and robust since they cannot break or bend excessively.
What Factors Contribute to Structural Failure
Structural failure can come from a variety of causes. For example, Reddy Kancharla believes that the structure's materials, environment, and application frequently correlate with the type of failure. The following are the critical causes of structural failure:
Structural flaw: The building is not strong enough to resist the applied load. This failure is mainly due to poor geometric design or material selection.
Structural deterioration: Corrosion, fatigue, wear, rot, or creep can cause the structure to deteriorate. For example, fatigue failures can start when cracks occur in areas of high stress. So, when subjected to cyclic loading, these fissures expand, resulting in rapid failure. This failure is mainly due to poor geometric design, material selection, or upkeep.
Manufacturing flaws: This failure includes utilizing faulty materials or failing to adhere to manufacturing procedures or requirements. It can also be due to poor craftsmanship or components out of tolerance, among other things.