• The magazine of the Korean Society for Advanced Composite Structures
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• v.4 no.3
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• pp.10-16
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• 2013

• Journal of Korean Association for Spatial Structures
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.39-48
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• 2022

The energy dissipation of inverted V-type eccentric steel braced frames can be achieved through the yielding of a slit link, through yielding of a number of strips between slits when the frame is subjected to inelastic cyclic deformation. On the other hand, the development of seismic resistance system without residual deformation is obtained by applying the superelasdtic shape memory alloy (SMA) material into the brace and link elements. This paper presents results from a systematic three-dimensional nonlinear finite element analysis on the structural behavior of the eccentric bracing systems subjected to cyclic loadings. A wide scope of structural behaviors explains the horizontal stiffness, hysteretic behaviors, and failure modes of the recentering eccentric bracing system. The accurate results presented here serve as benchmark data for comparison with results obtained using modern experimental testing and alternative theoretical approaches.

• Structural Engineering and Mechanics
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• v.82 no.5
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• pp.611-628
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• 2022

Energy-dissipative rocking (EDR) columns are a class of seismic mitigation device capable of dissipating seismic energy and preventing weak-story failure of moment resisting frames (MRFs). An EDR consists of two hinge-supported steel columns interconnected by steel dampers along its height. Under earthquakes, the input seismic energy can be dissipated by plastic energy of the steel dampers in the EDR column. However, the unrecoverable plastic deformation of steel dampers generally results in residual drifts in the structural system. This paper presents a proof-of-concept study on an innovative device, namely self-centring energy-dissipative rocking (SC-EDR) column, aiming at enabling self-centring capability of the EDR column by installing a set of shape memory alloy (SMA) tension braces. The working mechanism of the SC-EDR column is presented in detail, and the feasibility of the new device is carefully examined via experimental and numerical studies considering the parameters of the SMA bar diameter and the steel damper plate thickness. The seismic responses including load carrying capacities, stress distributions, base rocking behaviour, source of residual deformation, and energy dissipation are discussed in detail. A rational combination of the steel damper and the SMA tension braces can achieve excellent energy dissipation and self-centring performance.

• Journal of the Earthquake Engineering Society of Korea
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.1-12
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• 2012

The researches related to active control systems utilizing superelastic shape memory alloys (SMA) have been recently conducted to reduce critical damage due to lateral deformation after severe earthquakes. Although Superelastic SMAs undergo considerable inelastic deformation, they can return to original conditions without heat treatment only after stress removal. We can expect the mitigation of residual deformation owing to inherent recentering characteristics when these smart materials are installed at the part where large deformation is likely to occur. Therefore, the primary purpose of this research is to develop concentrically braced frames (CBFs) with superelastic SMA bracing systems and to evaluate the seismic performance of such frame structures. In order to investigate the inter-story drift response of CBF structures, 3- and 6-story buildings were design according to current design specifications, and then nonlinear time-history analyses were performed on numerical 2D frame models. Based on the numerical analysis results, it can be comparatively verified that the CBFs with superelastic SMA bracing systems have more structural advantages in terms of energy dissipation and recentering behavior than those with conventional steel bracing systems.

• Smart Structures and Systems
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• v.25 no.3
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• pp.311-322
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• 2020

This paper studies the influence of parameters of a novel SMA helical spring energy dissipation brace on the seismic resistance of a frame structure. The force-displacement relationship of the SMA springs is established mathematically based on a multilinear constitutive model of the SMA material. Four SMA helical springs are fabricated, and the force-displacement relationship curves of the SMA springs are obtained via tension tests. A numerical dynamic model of a two-floor frame with spring energy dissipation braces is constructed and evaluated via vibration table tests. Then, two spring parameters, namely, the ratio of the helical spring diameter to the wire diameter and the pre-stretch length, are selected to investigate their influences on the seismic responses of the frame structure. The simulation results demonstrate that the optimal ratio of the helical spring diameter to the wire diameter can be found to minimize the absolute acceleration and the relative displacement of the frame structure. Meanwhile, if the pre-stretch length is assigned a suitable value, excellent vibration reduction performance can be realized. Compared with the frame structure without braces, the frames with spring braces exhibit highly satisfactory seismic resistance performance under various earthquake waves. However, it is necessary to select an SMA spring with optimal parameters for realizing optimal vibration reduction performance.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.137-150
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• 2017

This paper focuses on the post-earthquake serviceability of steel arch bridges installed with three types of seismic dampers suffered mainshock-aftershock sequences. Two post-earthquake serviceability verification methods for the steel arch bridges are compared. The energy-absorbing properties of three types of seismic dampers, including the buckling restrained brace, the shear panel damper and the shape memory alloy damper, are investigated under major earthquakes. Repeated earthquakes are applied to the steel arch bridges to examine the influence of the aftershocks to the structures with and without dampers. The relative displacement is proposed for the horizontal transverse components in such complicated structures. Results indicate that the strain-based verification method is more conservative than the displacement-base verification method in evaluating the post-earthquake serviceability of structures and the seismic performance of the retrofitted structure is significantly improved.

• Steel and Composite Structures
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.569-586
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• 2022

This study introduces a novel friction damper as a component of a recentering frame connection, to solve the problem of structural repair costs, caused by stiffness deterioration and brittle fracture of the central brace frame (CBF). The proposed damper consists of shape memory alloy (SMA) bars with pretension applied to them to improve the stability. SMAs reduce the residual displacement by virtue of the properties of the materials themselves; in addition, a pretension can be applied to partially improve their energy dissipation capacity. The damper also consists of a friction device equipped with friction bolts for increased energy dissipation. Therefore, a study was conducted on the effects of the friction device as well as the pretension forces on the friction damper. For performance verification, 12 cases were studied and analyzed using ABAQUS program. In addition, the friction and pretension forces were used as variables in each case, and the results were compared. As a result, when the pretension and friction force are increased, the energy dissipation capacity gradually increases by up to about 94% and the recentering capacity decreases by up to about 55%. Therefore, it has been shown that SMA bars with adequate pretension in combination with bolts with adequate frictional force effectively reduce residual deformation and increase damper capacity. Thus, this study has successfully proposed a novel friction damper with excellent performance in terms of recentering and energy dissipation capacity.

• Earthquakes and Structures
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• v.25 no.5
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• pp.343-358
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• 2023

The superelastic viscous damper (SVD) is a hybrid passive control device comprising a viscoelastic damper and shape memory alloy (SMA) cables connected in series. The SVD is an innovative damper through which a large amount of seismic energy can dissipate. The current study assessed the seismic collapse induced by steel moment-resisting frames (SMRFs) equipped with SVDs and compared them with the performance of special MRFs and buckling restrained brace frames (BRBFs). For this purpose, nonlinear dynamic and incremental dynamic analysis (IDA) were conducted in OpenSees software. Both 5- and 9-story special MRFs, BRBFs, and MRFs equipped with the SVDs were examined. The results indicated that the annual exceedance rate for maximum residual drifts of 0.2% and 0.5% for the BRBFs and MRFs with SVDs, respectively, were considerably less than for SMRFs with reduced-beam section (RBS) connections and that the seismic performances of these structures were enhanced with the use of the BRB and SVD. The probability of collapse due to residual drift in the SVD, BRB, and RBS frames in the 9-story structure was 1.45, 1.75, and 1.05 times greater than for the 5-story frame.