Vibration characteristics of concrete-steel composite floor structures

This paper discusses the vibration characteristics of a concrete-steel composite multi-panel floor structure; the use of these structures is becoming more common. These structures have many desirable properties but are prone to excessive and complex vibration, which is not currently well understood. Existing design codes and practice guides provide generic advice or simple techniques that cannot address the complex vibration in these types of low-frequency structures. The results of this study show the potential for an adverse dynamic response from higher and multi-modal excitation influenced by human-induced pattern loading, structural geometry, and activity frequency. Higher harmonics of the load frequency are able to excite higher modes in the composite floor structure in addition to its fundamental mode. The analytical techniques used in this paper can supplement the current limited code and practice guide provisions for mitigating the impact of human-induced vibrations in these floor structures.