An investigation of seismic parameters of low yield strength steel plate shear walls

Steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) are effective lateral systems which have high initial stiffness, appropriate ductility and energy dissipation capability. Recently, steel plate shear walls with low yield point strength (LYP), were introduced and they attracted the attention of designers. Structures with this new system, besides using less steel, are more stable. In the present study, the effects of plates with low yield strength on the seismic design parameters of steel frames with steel plate shear walls are investigated. For this purpose, a variety of this kind of structures with different heights including the 2, 5, 10, 14 and 18-story buildings are designed based on the AISC seismic provisions. The structures are modeled using ANSYS finite element software and subjected to monotonic lateral loading. Parameters such as ductility (${\mu}$), ductility reduction ($R_{\mu}$), over-strength (${\Omega}_0$), displacement amplification ($C_d$) and behavior factor (R) of these structures are evaluated by carrying out the pushover analysis. Analysis results indicate that the ductility, over-strength and behavior factors decrease by increasing the number of stories. Also, the displacement amplification factor decreases by increasing the number of stories. Finally, the results were compared with the suggestions provided in the AISC code for steel plate shear walls. The results indicate that the values for over-strength, behavior and displacement amplification factors of LYP steel plate shear wall systems, are larger than those proposed by the AISC code for typical steel plate shear wall systems.