• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.541-562
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• 2015

This paper aims at developing the knowledge on the seismic behavior of dowel beam-to-column connections, typically employed in precast buildings in Europe. Despite the large diffusion of the industrial buildings, a high seismic vulnerability was exhibited by these structures, mostly due to the connection systems deficiencies, during some recent earthquakes (Emilia 2012, Turkey 2011). An experimental campaign was conducted on a typical dowel connection between an external column and a roof beam. In this paper, the performed cyclic shear test is described. According to the experimental results, the seismic response of the system is evaluated in terms of strength, stiffness and failure mechanism. Moreover, the complete damage pattern of the test is described by means of the instrumentations records. The connection failure occurred due to the concrete cover failure in the column (splitting failure). Such a mechanism corresponds to a negligible energy dissipation capacity of the connection, compared to the overall seismic response of the structure. The experimental results are also compared with the results of a similar monotonic shear test, as well as with some literature relationships for predicting the strength of dowel connections under horizontal (seismic) loads.

• Proceedings of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea Conference
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• 1998.04a
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• pp.131-138
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• 1998

Structural damage is used to be modeled through reductions in the stiffness of structural elements for the purpose of damage estimation of structural system. In this study, the concept of joint damage is employed for more realistic damage assessment of a steel structure. The joint damage is estimated damage based on the mode shape informations using neural networks. The beam-to-column connection in a steel frame structure is represented by a rotational spring at the fixed end of a beam element. The severity of joint damage is defined as the reduction ratio of the connection stiffness with respect to the value of the intact joint. The concept of the substructural identification is used for the localized damage assessment in a large structure. The feasibility of the proposed method is examined using an example with simulated data. It has been found that the joint damages can be reasonably estimated for the case with the measurements of the mode vectors subjected to noise.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.25 no.1
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• pp.103-114
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• 2013

Recently, there is a growing interest on sustainable connection system that makes it possible to reuse of main structural members by concentrating most of the damage in the frame caused by strong horizontal force, such as earthquake, to damper. In this study proposed a new type of damage-controlled connection system applying these concepts and analysed the major structural performance of the proposed system through the full-scale cyclic loading test and nonlinear finite element analyses. According to the result, it derived the optimal damper/beam strength ratio that minimize the damage of main members and satisfy at least the fully plastic moment of the beam. And it was to verify the possibility of applying as seismic connection details.

• Advances in concrete construction
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.235-248
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• 2020

Progressive collapse in a structure occurs when load bearing members are failed and the adjoining structural elements cannot resist the redistributed forces and fails subsequently, that leads to complete collapse of structure. Recently, construction using precast concrete technology is adopted increasingly because it offers many advantages like faster construction, less requirement of skilled labours at site, reduced formwork and scaffolding, massive production with reduced amount of construction waste, better quality and better surface finishing as compared to conventional reinforced concrete construction. Connections are the critical elements for any precast structure, because in past, major collapse of precast structure took place because of connection failure. In this study, behavior of four different precast wet connections with U shaped reinforcement bars provided at different locations is evaluated. Reduced 1/3^rd scale precast beam column assemblies having two span beam and three columns with removed middle column are constructed and examined by performing experiments. The response of precast connections is compared with monolithic connection, under column removal scenario. The connection region of test specimens are filled by cast-in-place micro concrete with and without polypropylene fibers. Performance of specimen is evaluated on the basis of ultimate load carrying capacity, maximum deflection at the location of removed middle column, crack formation and failure propagation. Further, Finite element (FE) analysis is carried out for validation of experimental studies and understanding the performance of structural components. Monolithic and precast beam column assemblies are modeled using non-linear Finite Element (FE) analysis based software ABAQUS. Actual experimental conditions are simulated using appropriate boundary and loading conditions. Finite Element simulation results in terms of load versus deflection are compared with that of experimental study. The nonlinear FE analysis results shows good agreement with experimental results.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.569-589
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• 2007

This paper presents an analytical model for RC beam-column connections that takes into account bond deterioration between reinforcing steel and concrete. The model is based on the Lumped Damage Mechanics (LDM) theory which allows for the characterization of cracking, degradation and yielding, and is extended in this paper by the inclusion of the slip effect as observed in those connections. Slip is assumed to be lumped at inelastic hinges. Thus, the concept of "slip hinge", based on the Coulomb friction plasticity theory, is formulated. The influence of cracking on the slip behavior is taken into account by using two concepts of LDM: the effective moment on an inelastic hinge and the strain equivalence hypothesis. The model is particularly suitable for wide beam-column connections for which bond deterioration dominates the hysteretic response. The model was evaluated by the numerical simulation of five tests reported in the literature. It is found that the model reproduces closely the observed behavior.

• International Journal of High-Rise Buildings
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.325-334
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• 2020

This paper aims to evaluate the interfacial stress concentrations on connection between vertical through-plate and H-beam in CFT column. Full-scale experiments were performed on three specimens with varying thickness of the vertical through-plate to investigate the interfacial stress concentration factor in the connections. The specimens underwent brittle failure at the location where the steel beam is connected to the vertical through-plate before the steel beam reached its plastic moment. The strain data of the part were analyzed, and the sectional analyses were conducted to determine appropriate residual stress models. In addition, the stress concentration factor was quantified by comparing the analytical local behavior in which the stress concentration is not reflected and the experimental data reflecting the stress concentration. The results showed that the maximum reduction of the stress concentration factor due to an increase in the thickness of the vertical through-plate is 50.3%.

• Computers and Concrete
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• v.25 no.4
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• pp.293-302
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• 2020

Connections play a significant role in strength of structures against earthquake-induced loads. According to the post-seismic reports, connection failure is a cause of overall failure in reinforced concrete (RC) structures. Connection failure results in a sudden increase in inter-story drift, followed by early and progressive failure across the entire structure. This article investigated the cyclic performance and behavioral improvement of shape-memory alloy-based connections (SMA-based connections). The novelty of the present work is focused on the effect of shape memory alloy bars is damage reduction, strain recoverability, and cracking distribution of the stated material in RC moment frames under seismic loads using 3D nonlinear static analyses. The present numerical study was verified using two experimental connections. Then, the performance of connections was studied using 14 models with different reinforcement details on a scale of 3:4. The response parameters under study included moment-rotation, secant stiffness, energy dissipation, strain of bar, and moment-curvature of the connection. The connections were simulated using LS-DYNA environment. The models with longitudinal SMA-based bars, as the main bars, could eliminate residual plastic rotations and thus reduce the demand for post-earthquake structural repairs. The flag-shaped stress-strain curve of SMA-based materials resulted in a very slight residual drift in such connections.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.141-153
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• 2023

The presented paper considers infill masonry walls' influence on the seismic reliability of precast concrete frames. The recent Bojnord earthquake on May 13th, 2017 in Iran (MW 5.4) illustrated that the infill masonry walls play a crucial role in the damage extent and life safety issues of inhabitants in the precast concrete buildings. The incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) approach was used to determine the fragility curves of the represented damaged precast frame. Then, by integrating site hazard and structural fragilities, the seismic reliability of the represented precast frame was evaluated in different damage limit states. Additionally, the static pushover analysis (SPA) approach was used to assess the seismic performance assessment of the precast frame. Bare and infilled frames were modeled as 2D frames employing the OpenSees software platform. The multi-strut macro-model method was employed for infill masonry simulation. Also, a relatively efficient and straightforward nonlinear model was used to simulate the nonlinear behavior of the precast beam-column joint. The outputs show that consideration of the masonry infilled wall effect in all spans of the structural frame leads to a decrease in the possibility of exceedance of specified damage limit states in the structures. In addition, variation of hazard curves for buildings with and without consideration of infilled walls leads to a decrease in the reliability of the building's frames with masonry infilled walls. Furthermore, the lack of infill walls in the first story significantly affects the precast concrete frame's seismic reliability and performance.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.35-46
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• 1998

Structural damage is used to be modeled through reductions in the stiffness of structural elements for the purpose of damage estimation of structural system. In this study, the concept of joint damage is employed for more realistic damage assessment of a steel structure. The joint damage is estimated damage based on the mode shape informations using neural networks, The beam-to-column connection in a steel frame structure is represented by a rotational spring at the fixed end of a beam element. The severity of joint damage is defined as the reduction ratio of the connection stiffness with respect to the value of the intact joint. The concept of the substructural identification is used for the localized damage assessment in a large structure. The feasibility of the proposed method is examined using an example with simulated data. It has been found that the joint damages can be reasonably estimated for the case with the measurements of the mode vectors subjected to noise.

• Journal of Korean Society of Steel Construction
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.783-792
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• 2008

While the recent high demand for mega-tall buildings has led to the development of high-performance and high-strength steels, the requirements for architectural-structure-performance steel have been raised as engineers recognize the potential damage that an earthquake can wreak on a tall building. A 600MPa-class steel has emerged to meet such need, and many studies are currently exploring its practical applications on civil engineering works and mega-tall buildings. The available data on the horizontal-force behaviors of structures built with such new steel, however, are still insufficient. There is an urgent need to look into its design data, especially its toughness, and to compare the plastic strain ratios of column-to-beam connections using high-strength steel and regular steel. One of the first studies on the behavior of a column-to-beam connection using 600MPa-class steel (SM570 TMC), this thesis analyzes such steel's structural performance by conducting a structural test on seismic resistance on a full-scale column-to-beam welded connection with non-scallop and recommended-scallop details. Compared with the previous studies on SM490, this thesis evaluates the weldability of SM570 TMC and presents the latter's seismic design data for use in testing its practical application.