Chai

Rob Y. H. Chai
Professor

Dept of Civil & Environmental Engineering
3133 Engineering Unit III
One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616

Phone: (530) 752-2404
Fax: (530) 752-7872
Email: yhchai@ucdavis.edu

Ph.D. in Structural Engineering,
1991, University of California, San Diego
Master of Engineering, 1984,
University of Canterbury, New Zealand
Bachelor of Engineering (Hons), 1983,
University of Canterbury, New Zealand



Professor Chai's research is mainly in the area of earthquake engineering with emphasis on structural design. He has conducted a number of studies on the cumulative damage assessment of structures under high-intensity seismic loading. Seismic input energy is extracted from the Fourier amplitude spectrum of the ground motion and is used as a design parameter for characterizing the damage potential of the ground motion. He has also conducted experiments to correlate the plastic strain energy capacity of structures to the peak response displacement imposed on the structure. The ultimate goal of his research is to combine the seismic energy demand and plastic strain energy capacity studies into a framework where duration-dependent seismic design spectra can be established.

Dr. Chai has also been involved in experimental testing of large-scale structural components. An objective of his research is to provide experimental verification of design details that are necessary for ductile response of structures. Recently completed projects include (i) flexural strength and ductility assessment of reinforced concrete piles under the interaction of soils, (ii) lateral stability of reinforced concrete wall-columns under large-amplitude reversed cyclic axial tension and compression, (iii) ductility capacity of slitted reinforced concrete masonry wall-piers under reversed cyclic loading, (iv) damage characteristics of lightweight concrete precast wall panels under reversed cyclic loading, and (v) in-plane reversed cyclic response of level and stepped cripple walls. He is also involved in field monitoring of a long-span lightweight aggregate concrete bridge for short and long-term service performance. Dr. Chai was the recipient of the Transportation Research Board's K. B. Woods Award in 1991, recipient of the Best Paper Award at the 1990 Third International Conference on Short and Medium Span Bridges in Toronto, Canada, and a recipient of the National Science Foundation's Research Initiation Grant in 1995. He was also the recipient of the Outstanding Faculty Advisor Award for the College of Engineering at UC Davis for academic year 1996-1997. He received a Research Fellowship from the Japan Science and Technology Agency in 1996 to engage research at the Public Works Research Institute in Tsukuba Science City, Japan. He served as an Associate Editor for ASCE's Journal of Structural Engineering from 2004-2007.

Funded Research Projects

California Department of Transportation -"Shortening Closure Pour Waiting Time for Bridge Construction" - Current.
California Department of Transportation -"Replacement Alternatives for Deteriorated Approach Slabs" - Current.
California Department of Transportation -"Health Monitoring of the New Benicia-Martinez Bridge" - Current.
CUREe-Caltech Woodframe Project Task 1.4.3 - "Seismic Behavior of Constant Height and Stepped Cripple Walls" - Completed.
California Department of Transportation - "Parametric Study of Wheel Load Distributions in Multi-cell Box-Girder Bridges and Comparison with AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specification" - Completed.
National Science Foundation Research Initiation Grant - "Damage Characterization of Structures Under High-Intensity Seismic Loading" - Completed.
California Department of Transportation - "Flexural Strength and Ductility of Reinforced Concrete Piles" - Completed.
Private Funding - "Reversed Cyclic Lateral Response of Perforated Lightweight Concrete Precast Wall Panels" - Completed.

Visit my Structural and Earthquake Engineering Group for details of my research projects.

List of Journal Publications

K. K. Vo, C. M. Wang, and Y. H. Chai (2008), "Buckling Analysis of Moderately Thick Rotational Shells under Uniform Pressure Using the Ritz Method", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 134, No. 4, pp.593-607.

S. K. Kunnath, E. Erduran, Y. H. Chai and M. Yashinsky (2008), "Effect of Near-Fault Vertical Ground Motions on Seismic Response of Highway Overcrossings", Journal of Bridge Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 13, No. 3, pp. 282-290.

S. T. Song and Y. H. Chai (2008),"Performance assessment of multi-column bents with extended pile-shafts under lateral earthquake loads", The IES Journal Part A: Civil & Structural Engineering, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 39–54.

S. T. Song, Y. H. Chai and A. M. Budek (2006), "Methodology for Preliminary Seismic Design of Extended Pile-Shafts for Bridge Structures", Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics, Vol. 35, pp. 1721-1738.

Y. H. Chai and C. M. Wang (2006), "An Application of Differential Transformation to Stability Analysis of Heavy Columns", International Journal of Structural Stability and Dynamics, Vol. 6, No. 3, pp. 317-332.

K. K. Ko, C. M. Wang and Y. H. Chai (2006), "Membrane Analysis and Optimization of Submerged Domes with Allowance for Selfweight and Skin Cover Load", Archive of Applied Mechanics, Vol. 75, pp. 235-247.

C. M. Wang, K. K. Vo and Y. H. Chai (2006), "Membrane Analysis and Minimum Weight Design of Submerged Spherical Domes", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 132, No. 2, pp. 253-259.

Tara. C. Hutchinson, Y. H. Chai and Ross W. Boulanger (2005), "Simulation of Full-Scale Cyclic Lateral Load Tests on Piles", Journal of Geotechnical and Geoenvironmental Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 131, No. 9, pp. 1172-11175.

S. T. Song, Y. H. Chai and T. H. Hale (2005), "Analytical Model for Ductility Assessment of Fixed-Head Concrete Piles", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 131, No. 7, pp. 1051-1059.

Y. H. Chai and S. K. Kunnath (2005), "Minimum Thickness for Ductile RC Structural Walls", Engineering Structures, Vol. 27, pp. 1052-1063.

Y. H. Chai and J. D. Anderson (2005), "Seismic Response of Perforated Lightweight Aggregate Concrete Wall Panels for Low-Rise Modular Classrooms", Engineering Structures, Vol. 27, pp. 593-604.

Y. H. Chai and C. M. Wang (2005), "Approximate Solution For the Shape of Submerged Funicular Arches with Selfweight", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 131, No. 3, pp. 399-404.

Y. H. Chai (2005), "Incorporating Low-Cycle Fatigue Model into Duration-Dependent Inelastic Design Spectra", Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics, Vol. 34, pp. 83-96.

T. C. Hutchinson, Y. H. Chai, R. W. Boulanger and I. M. Idriss (2004). "Estimating Inelastic Displacements for Design: Extended Pile-Shaft-Supported Bridge Structures", Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 1081-1094.

T. C. Hutchinson, Y. H. Chai, R. W. Boulanger and I. M. Idriss (2004). "Inelastic Seismic Response of Extended Pile-Shaft-Supported Bridge Structures", Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 1054-1080.

S. K. Kunnath and Y. H. Chai (2004), "Cumulative Damage-Based Inelastic Cyclic Demand Spectrum", Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics, Vol. 33, pp. 499-520.

Y. H. Chai and Tara C. Hutchinson (2003), "Seismic Damage Characteristics of Cripple Walls", Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 19, No. 4, pp. 753-778.

Song, Shin-Tai, Y. H. Chai and Susan E. Hida (2003), "Live Load Distribution Factors for Concrete Box-Girder Bridges", Journal of Bridge Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 8, No. 5, pp. 273-280.

Y. H. Chai and S. T. Song (2003), "Assessment of Seismic Performance of Extended Pile-Shafts", Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics, Vol. 32, pp. 1937-1954.

Y. H. Chai and S. K. Kunnath (2003), "Geometry of Submerged Funicular Arches in Cartesian Coordinates", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 129, No. 8, pp. 1087-1092.

Y. H. Chai, Tara C. Hutchinson and Steven M. Vukazich (2003), "Quasi-Static Reversed Cyclic Response of Level and Stepped Cripple Walls", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 129, No. 5, pp. 567-575.

Y. H. Chai and Tara C. Hutchinson (2002), "Flexural Strength and Ductility of Extended Pile-Shafts - Experimental Study", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 128, No. 5, pp. 595-602.

Y. H. Chai (2002), "Flexural Strength and Ductility of Extended Pile-Shafts - Analytical Model", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 128, No. 5, pp. 586-594.

Y. H. Chai and P. Fajfar (2000), "A Procedure for Estimating Input Energy Spectra for Seismic Design", Journal of Earthquake Engineering, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp.539-561.

Y. H. Chai and T. D. Elayer (1999), "Lateral Stability of Reinforced Concrete Columns under Axial Reversed Cyclic Tension and Compression", ACI Structural Journal, Vol. 96, No. 5, pp. 780-789.

Y. H. Chai (1999), "Characterization of Story-Level Seismic Damage Using an Energy-Based Damage Model", Experimental Mechanics, Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 53-61.

Y. H. Chai and L. L. Yaw (1999), "Reversed Cyclic Response of Monolithic and Slitted Reinforced Concrete Masonry Wall-Piers", Engineering Structures, Vol. 21, No. 2, pp. 99-111.

Y. H. Chai, P. Fajfar and K. M. Romstad (1998), "Formulation of Duration-Dependent Inelastic Seismic Design Spectrum", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 124, No. 8, pp. 913-921.

Y. H. Chai and K. M. Romstad (1997), "Correlation Between Strain-Based Low-Cycle Fatigue and Energy-Based Linear Damage Models", Earthquake Spectra, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 191-209.

M. J. N. Priestley, F. Seible, G. A. MacRae and Y. H. Chai (1997), "Seismic Assessment of the Santa Monica Viaduct Bent Details", ACI Structural Journal, Vol. 94, No. 5, pp. 513-524.

Y. H. Chai (1996), "An Analysis of the Seismic Characteristics of Steel-Jacketed Circular Bridge Columns", Earthquake Engineering and Structural Dynamics, Vol. 25, No. 2, pp. 149-161.

Y. H. Chai (1996), "Sectional Depth of Prestressed Concrete Beams with Excess Capacity", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 122, No. 7, pp. 788-793.

Y. H. Chai, K. M. Romstad, and S. M. Bird (1995), "Energy-Based Linear Damage Model for High-Intensity Seismic Loading", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 121, No. 5, pp. 857-864.

Y. H. Chai, M. J. N. Priestley, and F. Seible (1994), "Analytical Model for Steel-Jacketed RC Circular Bridge Columns ", Journal of Structural Engineering, ASCE, Vol. 120, No. 8, pp. 2358-2376.

Y. H. Chai, M. J. N. Priestley, and F. Seible (1991), "Seismic Retrofit of Circular Bridge Columns for Enhanced Flexural Performance", ACI Structural Journal, Vol. 88, No. 5, pp. 572-484.

M. J. N. Priestley and Y. H. Chai (1985), "Seismic Design of Reinforced Concrete Masonry Moment-Resisting Frame", The Masonry Society Journal, Vol. 4, No. 1.

M. J. N. Priestley and Y. H. Chai (1984), "Prediction of Masonry Strength from Constituent Properties", New Zealand Concrete Construction, Part 1 & 2, March/April issue.

Last modified on May 14, 2008