Facilities

General Information

The iSTAR Laboratory is a 3600 sq. ft space that includes a strong floor, a non-destructive testing and monitoring laboratory, a multi-purpose conference room, and a machine shop. A viewing balcony overlooks the strong floor, allowing overseeing experiments from above. The laboratory is serviced by a 25 ton overhead crane and has truck access for material and specimen delivery. The facilities are equipped with dynamic hydraulic actuators and the largest shake table in the Pacific Northwest. The 1600 sq. ft strong floor has 100,000 lb tie-downs at approximately 4′ centers.

Large-Scale Shake Tables

Shake Table 2.75 x 3.25

Horizontal Shake Table

Horizontal Shake Table

  • Platform of 10 ft x 10 ft with tie downs
  • Payload capacity of 20,000 lb
  • Maximum acceleration of 3g

Vertical Shake Table

  • Platform of 2 ft x 2 ft with tie downs
  • Payload capacity of 5,000 lb
  • Maximum acceleration of 5g

Hydraulic Actuators and Load Frames

Actuator 2.75 x 3.25

Horizontal Load Frame

Cyclic and Fatigue Loading

  • Tension-compression 220,000 lb actuator capable of cyclic and dynamic loads with a 20 inch stroke
  • Tension-compression 55,000 lb actuator capable of dynamic loads
  • Tension-compression actuator of 110,000 lb cyclic load capacity and 6 inch stroke
  • Self-reacting load frame with hydraulic grips and capacity of 110,000 lb and 6 inch stroke

Monotonic Loading

  • Custom load frames with hydraulic jacks for up to 700,000 lb capacity
  • Numerous 120,000 lb capacity hydraulic jacks ranging from 3 to 6 inch stroke

Data Acquisition and Instrumentation

Instruments 3.5 x 2.75

Displacement Transducers

  • Portable 16 channels for field and additional 32 channels of in-laboratory high sample-rate data acquisition
  • Instrumentation includes accelerometers, displacement transducers, strain gauges
  • Digital video of tests are also available

Non-Destructive Testing and Monitoring Laboratory

The NDT&M Laboratory features a suite of sensitive instruments and sensors to perform a range of non-destructive testing and monitoring tasks. Specifically, the following pieces of equipment are available:

  • Vallen AMSY-5

    Vallen AMSY-5

    14 channel acoustic emission data acquisition system (Vallen AMSY-5)

  • 4 channel high-speed transient recorder (Elsys TraNET FE)
  • Arbitrary waveform generator (BK Precision 4053)
  • High-frequency signal amplifier (Trek 2100HF)
  • Suite of acoustic emission sensors (Vallen VS-150M, Panametrics V103)
  • Suite of normal and shear-type ultrasonic transducers (Panametrics V103/153)
  • Suite of capacitive accelerometers (Silicon Designs Model 2260-010)

In addition to these instruments, the NDT&M Laboratory also features its own customized and programmable 250,000 lb-capacity concrete testing machine (Forney VFD Automatic).

Educational Shake Table

The iSTAR Laboratory also features a small-scale educational Quanser I-40 Shake Table. This unique piece of equipment is used for education, research, and sensor calibration.