Search Results (26)

Steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) nowadays are accepted as an efficient lateral force-resisting system, especially for high-rise structures, because of their large initial stiffness and high level of energy absorption. There are different types of SPSWs based on their infill plate type. Cellular solid shear walls (CSSWs) are innovative steel shear walls filled with cellular solids. CSSWs can be useful for special architectural designs because of their unique appearance and openings. Whereas many studies have been reported on the SPSWs, there is a shortage of studies about CSSWs. This study presents the results of a detailed, numerical parametric analysis of triangular and quadrilateral CSSWs under monotonic loading in terms of their shear capacity, initial stiffness, and ductility, and also compares them with SPSWs. The investigated parameters are the size of cells, the cellular solid depth, and the cell wall thickness. The study results indicate that at the same capacity, the quadrilateral cellular solids are far lighter than triangular ones, making the quadrilateral CSSWs more suitable for use. In addition, the findings reveal that the performance of CSSWs is good enough to be used as a lateral force-resisting system in buildings. Finally, a practical procedure for the strength capacity of CSSWs based on the theoretical strip model is proposed. Full article

Steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) are widely used in earthquake-prone areas, and they usually undergo multiple earthquakes throughout their service lives. The performances of SPSWs under a single shot of an earthquake have been widely studied, although the secondary seismic performance of earthquake-damaged structures remains unclear. Damage to an SPSW structure during an earthquake is difficult to evaluate. In this study, the degradation of the seismic performance of SPSWs during earthquakes was investigated. A test specimen was subjected to a two-stage quasistatic load. The plastic development and failure modes of SPSW specimens were investigated. The degradation of bearing capacity, stiffness, and energy dissipation performance was analyzed. On the basis of the experimental investigation, finite-element models introducing the ductile damage criterion and the cyclic constitutive model of steel were established. The degradation of the seismic performance of SPSWs under secondary earthquakes was studied. The results indicate that the stiffness of the SPSWs degrades more significantly than the bearing capacity. The larger the height-to-thickness ratio of the embedded plate, the more obvious the decrease in the bearing capacity, and the smaller the decrease in stiffness. With the increase in the maximum lateral displacement reached by the structure in an earthquake, and as the pinch phenomenon of the hysteresis curve of the SPSW becomes more serious, the energy dissipation capacity shows a uniform downward trend. Full article

An efficient retrofitting technique is expected to improve the seismic performance of a lateral force-resisting system without increasing the seismic demand on the structure, which can unfavorably lead to irreparable damages during a seismic event. On this basis, the present study aims to introduce an optimal strategy for seismic retrofitting of steel plate shear wall (SPSW) systems using low yield point (LYP) steel material and to demonstrate its effectiveness through systematic investigations. To this end, detailed nonlinear static, cyclic, and dynamic analyses, as well as fragility analyses, have been performed on single- and multi-story, code-designed as well as retrofitted SPSWs. The aim is to identify the most efficient retrofitting approach and to demonstrate its effectiveness in enhancing the seismic performance and lowering the seismic vulnerability of the system. It is shown that replacing the original, conventional steel infill plate in an SPSW system with an LYP steel plate having twice the original thickness can improve not only the buckling capacity and serviceability, but also the structural performance and seismic response of the system, without increasing the demand on the structure and creating overstrength concerns. Fragility analysis also shows that the vulnerability, as well as probability, of damage to system can be considerably lowered as a result of the implementation of such a retrofitting strategy. Full article

Steel Plate Shear Walls (SPSW) provide significant lateral load capacity and can be utilized in the seismic retrofit and upgrade of existing reinforced concrete (r/c) buildings. In this study, the application of SPSW to retrofit a r/c building designed according to older seismic provisions is presented. Three different options to model SPSW are utilized, i.e., by equivalent braces, by finite elements, and by membrane elements, seeking not only to appropriately simulate the actual behavior of the SPSW but also to achieve the desired seismic behavior of the retrofitted building. Specific seismic response indices, including plastic hinge formations, are derived by non-linear time-history analyses in order to assess the seismic behavior of the retrofitted r/c building. Inspection of the results provided by non-linear analyses in conjunction with the different modeling options of the SPSW leads to the conclusion that the model with the membrane elements exhibits the best performance, implying that for the seismic retrofit and upgrade of existing r/c buildings, the use of membrane elements to model the SPSW is recommended. Full article

This paper studied the seismic performance of corrugated steel plate shear walls with vertical corrugated steel plates connected with beams only (CboSPSWs). A numerical model of a CboSPSW was developed. Then, a series of parametric analyses were conducted to determine the effects of the related parameters on the hysteretic performance of CboSPSWs, including the height–thickness ratio, aspect ratio, corrugation angle, stiffness of the free-edge stiffener, and surrounding frame stiffness. In addition, the limit of the stiffness of the free-edge stiffener of the CboSPSW was investigated. Finally, the serviceability of the existing design method, the Plate-Frame Interaction model (PFI), for CboSPSWs was examined. The results show that CboSPSWs have high values of strength and initial stiffness as well as good and stable energy dissipation capacities. The ultimate strength of the corrugated steel plate (CSP) can be improved significantly by free-edge stiffeners. When the flexural stiffness ratio exceeds 1.0, the increase of the average stress of the CSPs close to the beams is less than 20%, and the tension field develops fully in the CSPs in CboSPSWs. The PFI model can predict the shear strength and initial stiffness values of the hysteretic curves of CboSPSWs with good accuracy, which can be used in the design and plastic analyses of CboSPSWs. Full article

This paper presents numerical investigations of the shear performance of vertically corrugated steel plate shear walls (CvSPSWs) with inelastic buckling of infilled plates under lateral loads. A numerical model was developed and verified by an experiment. Subsequently, a series of parametric analyses were conducted to investigate the effects of the concerned parameters on the shear performance of CvSPSWs, such as the connection type, height–thickness ratio, aspect ratio, horizontal subpanel width, and surrounding beam stiffness, in which the loading mechanism, buckling behavior, and failure modes of the corrugated steel plate (CSP) in the CvSPSW were discussed. The results show that CvSPSWs exhibit large initial stiffness, in-plane and out-of-plane strength, and good displacement ductility. Further, a formula for predicting the buckling strength of the CSP in the CvSPSW is proposed, and the effect of the section stiffness of the inclined subpanel on buckling strength and the development of the tension field of the CSP was investigated. In addition, simplified analytical models for CvSPSWs were examined to simplify the elastoplastic analysis of CvSPSWs. The results show that the plate-frame interaction model and the modified strip model can reproduce the shear performance of CvSPSWs with good accuracy. Full article

This paper investigates the lateral performance of corrugated steel plate shear walls with corrugation laid vertically connected with beams only (CboSPSW). A numerical model for the CboSPSW was developed, and verified by a laboratory test. Based on the verified numerical model, extensive parametric analyses were carried out to investigate the key parameters’ effects on the shear performance of CboSPSWs, including the height ratio, aspect ratio, opening rate, and surrounding frame stiffness. In these parametric analyses, strength and lateral stiffness losses of the corrugated steel plate (CSP), buckling, and failure modes of the shear walls were investigated. In addition to these, a simplified model for the CboSPSW was developed to predict the shear performance of the shear wall. The results show that the CboSPSWs exhibit large strength, initial stiffness, and good displacement ductility. Compared with the corrugated steel plate shear walls with vertical corrugated steel plates connected with beams and columns (CbcSPSW), the strength of the CSPs decreased 15–28% in the CboSPSWs. The free edges of the CSPs in the CboSPSWs should be strengthened by adding stiffeners on one side or two sides of the CSPs in practical projects. The aspect ratio and opening rate of the CSPs should be controlled for strength decreases of the CSPs. The modified strip model can be used to predict shear performance of the CboSPSW with a reasonable accuracy. Full article

Modeling Steel Plate Shear Wall (SPSW) behavior can be computationally demanding. This is especially true when high-fidelity modeling is carried out via shell or 3D solid elements. It has been shown that SPSW behavior can be captured with adequate accuracy through the strip method via nonlinear truss elements idealization. The widely accepted and reliable analysis platform, OpenSees, requires text-based input (.tcl) files created by a skilled programmer. Hence, a Pre/Post-processing User Interface (UI) software package (INSPECT-SPSW) is introduced herein. With basic input, the INSPECT-SPSW package allows the user to create the OpenSees (.tcl) input file, run different nonlinear analyses, and retrieve and visualize the output. In addition, the UI includes illustrated wrappers for several OpenSees commands for various material definitions, plasticity modeling options, modal analysis, and nonlinear analysis types. Validation and verification were conducted against published results of experimental and numerical cyclic loading specimens. The user-friendly interface successfully created accurate models that capture the SPSW nonlinear behavior, including the various possible failure mechanisms. e.g., beam or column plastic hinging, web plate yielding, etc. With demonstrated performance and intuitive UI, INSPECT-SPSW is expected to facilitate the broad adoption of the strip method for Performance-Based Earthquake Design (PBED) of SPSWs. Full article

A steel plate shear wall (SPSW) is a useful component for resisting lateral action. To improve the performance of frame columns, some studies focus on a two-side connected SPSW, in which the wall plate is not connected with the frame columns. However, few studies conducted on a two-side connected SPSW consider the effect of frame constraints or the connections between the infill plates and frame beams. In this study, by using finite element modeling (FEM), two unstiffened SPSW models with two-side fixed connections and six unstiffened SPSW models with two-side bolt connections were simulated. Their performance under the presence of out-of-plane frame beam flange constraints and different numbers of bolts between the infill plates and frame beams was analyzed. The mechanical performances such as hysteretic behaviors, the capacity of energy dissipation and the out-of-plane deformation of the members were investigated by applying monotonic and cyclic loading. The results revealed that non-negligible deformation would be generated at the lateral border of the bolt connections and that the out-of-plane deformation of the frame could be significantly affected by constraints. These findings can guide the engineering design of SPSWs in the future. Full article

Many studies on structural topology optimization of steel plate shear walls have been conducted. However, research on topology optimization using the bidirectional evolutionary structural optimization method is limited. Accordingly, this study optimized the topology of the stiffening effect of steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) based on this method. A finite element model of the SPSW was established using Abaqus software through the “sandwich” modeling method. An optimization region was expanded into two optimization regions. As the optimization targets, SPSWs with different aspect ratios were selected. Elastoplastic optimization of a single-layer SPSW was performed through the horizontal displacement cyclic loading, and the distribution law of the stiffening effect was obtained. The stiffeners on the SPSW were arranged according to the SPSW-A075 scheme. Monotonic and reciprocating loading simulation tests were performed on the unstiffened SPSW and common transverse and longitudinal stiffeners to analyze their mechanical properties. The results show that the optimized layout of the stiffened SPSW demonstrated better seismic performance and energy dissipation capacity. The buckling bearing capacity increased by 2.17–2.61 times, and the stiffness and initial stiffness improved significantly. Full article

The corrugated steel plate shear wall (CSPSW) has high strength, ductility, and energy dissipation capacity and can be used as the lateral force-resisting system of multi-story and high-rise buildings. The vertical load transmitted by the upper floor and frame columns may inevitably act on the corrugated steel plate shear wall. However, the influence of the gravity load on the performance of the corrugated steel shear wall is not considered in most studies. To investigate the behavior of corrugated steel plate shear walls considering the actual gravity load, four scaled SPSWs under lateral and vertical loading were tested. The specimens’ failure mode, envelope curves, and hysteretic curves were analyzed. A numerical simulation model was established based on the validation of the experimental test on the SPSWs. The results showed that the hysteresis curves of the test were consistent with those of the simulation results. Finally, parametric analysis was conducted on the SPSWs with different types of infill plates, height-to-thickness ratio, and gravity loads. Full article

The coupled steel plate and reinforced concrete (C-SPRC) composite wall is a new type of coupled-wall system consisting of steel coupling beams (SCBs) that join two SPRC walls where the steel plate shear wall (SPSW) is embedded in the RC wall. Although the C-SPRC wall has been extensively constructed in high-rise buildings in seismic regions, research on its behavior has rarely been reported. No code provisions are available for directly guiding the preliminary design of such coupled-wall systems. In the research, three 1/3-scaled C-SPRC wall subassemblies including one-and-a-half stories of SPRC walls and a half-span of SCB were tested under simulated earthquake action, considering the fabrication method of the embedded SPSW and the shear-span ratio of the SPRC walls as two test variables. The prime concern of the research was to evaluate the influences of those popular design and construction parameters on the seismic behavior of the C-SPRC wall. Deviating from the beam tip loading method used in conventional subassembly tests, the lateral cyclic load in this research was applied at the top of the wall pier so that the behaviors of both walls and SCBs could be examined. The test results exhibited the great seismic performance of the subassemblies with the coupling mechanism fully developed. The energy dissipation capacity and inter-story deformation capacity of the subassembly with the assembled SPSW were roughly 9.4% and 13.2% greater than those with the conventional welded SPSW. Compared with the subassembly with the shear-span ratio of 2.2, the interstory-deformation capacity of the one with the shear-span ratio of 2.0 was increased by approximately 13.4%, while the energy dissipation capacity was decreased by 10.9%. The test results were further compared with the simulation results using the proven-reliable finite element analysis with respect to the hysteretic curves, skeleton curves, energy dissipation capacities and failure patterns. Full article

The seismic performance of four different kinds of steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) before and after corrosion are investigated in this paper, including flat steel plate shear walls (FSPSWs), SPSWs with vertical slots in the middle (VSSPSWs), SPSWs with orthogonal stiffeners (OSPSWs) and SPSWs with silts on both sides (BSPSWs). A numerical model that can be validated by existing quasi-static cyclic tests is developed by ABAQUS 6.13. The seismic performance of SPSWs under cyclic loading and atmospheric corrosion is investigated. The results show that (1) compared with FSPSWs, the ultimate shearing strength, initial stiffness, energy dissipation, and ductility of OSPSWs are significantly improved under cyclic loads when both VSSPSWs and BSPSWs are reduced in ultimate shearing strength and energy dissipation. (2) The performance of the FSPSW is most affected by atmospheric corrosion but setting stiffeners can significantly improve the hysteretic performance after corrosion. Meanwhile, the effect of the VSSPSW is better than that of the BSPSW in decreasing the ultimate shearing strength, although both decrease more tardily than that of the FSPSW. (3) The relationships between the ultimate shearing strength and corrosion time of SPSWs are fitted into four equations in this paper, which can be used in practical situations. Full article

Steel frame with steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) is used to resist lateral loads caused by wind and earthquakes in high-rise buildings. In this load-resisting system, the cost and performance are more efficient than in the moment frame system. Behaviors of beam-to-column connections are assumed to be pinned or fixed to simplify the calculation in the past few decades. However, studies have stated that such a simulation fails to reveal the response of beam-to-column connections. In this paper, a newly developed metaheuristic optimization algorithm—the dolphin echolocation algorithm (DE)—based on foraging prey using echolocation in dolphins is applied as the present study optimizer. Two different two-dimensional semirigid connection steel frames with SPSWs are optimized to obtain the minimum cost of semirigid connection steel frame with steel plate shear walls with constraints to element stresses and story drift ratio according to the American Institute of Steel Construction (AISC) Load and Resistance Factor Design (LFRD). SPSW is modeled as a brace with equivalent lateral stiffness, while the $P-△$ effects are considered in the steel frame. Semirigid connections are used to reveal the actual responses of beam-to-column connections. The results demonstrate the proposed method’s effectiveness for optimizing semirigid connection steel frames with SPSWs and the interaction between semirigid connections and the SPSWs. Full article

Due to multiple degrees of freedom, evaluating high-rise buildings’ seismic safety under unpredictable seismic excitations is difficult. To address the issue that the damage mechanism of a mega-subcontrolled structural system (MSCSS) has not yet been studied, this paper employs ABAQUS software with strong nonlinear analysis capabilities to analyze the nonlinear elastic—plastic time history of an MSCSS, analyze structural damage to the MSCSS structure, reveal the internal energy dissipation mechanism of the MSCSS, and evaluate the damping performance of the MSCSS structure. This work presents a novel and optimized MSCSS structure equipped with SPSW that improves the system’s seismic performance. First, a refined finite element model of the MSCSS is established, and the impact of vigorous seismic excitations on the damage to the MSCSS structure is considered. The MSCSS structure’s vulnerable parts are then summarized using stress nephograms and residual stresses. Finally, the favorable damping performance of the structure reveals that the newly proposed structure has good shock absorption performance based on an analysis of the energy dissipation, time history, and interstory drift of the MSCSS. This paper’s research findings elaborate the structural damage trend in MSCSS structures, which can serve as a theoretical foundation for MSCSS structure damage identification. Full article