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The
Comete Guam building was constructed during 1996 and 1997 and
was originally proposed for retail and department store
development. In mid-1998 the owners amended the proposed use
to that of an indoor aquarium, virtual-reality indoor theme
park, and restaurant. To accommodate Underwater World, a
750,000 gallon (3.4 million liter) indoor aquarium with 400
linear feet (120 m) of walk-through tunnel, featuring marine
life indigenous to Micronesia, was constructed. Gameworks
required several virtual-reality games such as an IMAX
ride-theater to be supported on existing suspended floors.
Sam Choy’s Restaurant required significant structural
revisions to accommodate new stair access and mechanical
openings. Large openings were required, of dimensions 20 feet
by 24 feet (6 m by 7 m), in the existing bonded post-tensioned
(PT) floor system. Given the corrosive environment of the
proposed aquarium tank, carbon fiber was selected as a
superior material for strengthening the adjacent slabs and
beams. The controlled demolition of the floor openings was
undertaken by first detecting the PT tendons using
non-destructive testing techniques. Then using
diamond-blade-floor and track-mounted saws, panels were cut
and lowered.
The application of carbon-fiber reinforcement was the first
for Guam and Micronesia, and a series of large-scale tests
were conducted to verify the technology. Three 12-foot (3 m)
long beam specimens were tested in flexure to failure to
demonstrate the ability of these advanced materials to
strengthen existing concrete structures.
Several hundred floor penetrations were required to
accommodate mechanical services for marine life and human
occupants. All PT tendons were located using electro-magnetic
testing equipment to allow the mechanical contractor to avoid
severing PT tendons.
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