Abstarct
Interest is growing in the world for finding a suitable technology capable of cutting concrete structures safely and economically. Such a technology would enable buildings to be partially or totally dismantled according to a sort of “cut-and-draw” method with minor interference with the surroundings. For this purpose the choice is practically restricted to diamond wire and to abrasive suspension jet. Accurate cuts can be made with DW irrespective of the thickness of the concrete element, with low noise and no dirt spreading around the place. However the system is relatively burdensome and requires a long installation time and a close control of the operation. On the other side ASJ demands large amounts of abrasive that must be dealt with properly using a catcher, but it is easier to install and to operate safely from distance. In order to compare the performance of the two competitor technologies a number of cutting tests have been made on reinforced concrete beams under variable experimental conditions (rope tension and push-down force with DW; pressure, nozzle diameter, abrasive mass flowrate and traverse velocity with DIAJet). Results are compared in terms of cutting rate as well as of unit cost of cutting in order to identify the most promising field of application and the optimum operational conditions for each technology
Contents
1. INTRODUCTION
2. DEMOLITION METHODS AND TECHNOLOGIES
2.1 Techniques of mass disintegration
2.2 Techniques of controlled dismantling
2.3 Techniques of cutting and disassembly
3. CUTTING WITH DIAMOND WIRE
3.1 Experimental tests
3.2 Results
3.3 Cost evaluation
4. CUTTING WITH ABRASIVE SUSPENSION JET
4.1 Experimental tests
4.2 Results
4.3 Cost evaluation
5. TECHNOLOGICAL COMPARISON
5.1 Fields of application
6. CONCLUSIONS