Technical Papers
Jun 19, 2023

Seismic Behavior of Balloon Frame Cross-Laminated Timber Connections

Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 149, Issue 9

Abstract

Cross-laminated timber (CLT) is an innovative building material that has become increasingly popular in midrise building construction due to its rapid assembly capability, environmental friendliness, and beneficial strength-to-weight ratio. Currently, CLT balloon-style construction requires the engineering team to use the alternative means procedure within design standards for areas of high seismicity in the US. This study experimentally investigated the behavior of CLT balloon-style construction connections and characterized their behavior. Various wall-to-floor and panel-to-panel connections were identified in the test matrix and tested under monotonic and cyclic loads. A series of full-scale CLT shear wall tests focusing on the response of connections was conducted, adopting a biaxial loading protocol to characterize connection and system response to loading in two directions.

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Data Availability Statement

Some or all data, models, or code that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Acknowledgments

The material presented in this paper is based on work supported by the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) under the office of Policy Development and Research, University Partnerships Division, Award no. H-21682 CA. This financial support is greatly acknowledged. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations presented in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the HUD. The authors acknowledge the contributions and feedback of Phil Line, Hans-Erik Blomgren, Scott Breneman, and Lisa Podesto regarding the experimental program and setup. The test material donations by Simpson StrongTie for the experimental studies are greatly appreciated.

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Go to Journal of Structural Engineering
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 149Issue 9September 2023

History

Received: Aug 17, 2022
Accepted: Apr 12, 2023
Published online: Jun 19, 2023
Published in print: Sep 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Nov 19, 2023

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Authors

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Benjamin N. Hayes [email protected]
Formerly, Master’s Student, Zachry Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX 77843. Email: [email protected]
Assistant Professor, Zachry Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Texas A&M Univ., College Station, TX 77843 (corresponding author). ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0686-493X. Email: [email protected]
John W. van de Lindt, F.ASCE [email protected]
Harold H. Short Endowed Chair Professor and Co-Director, NIST Center of Excellence for Risk-Based Community Resilience Planning, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado State Univ., Fort Collins, CO 80523. Email: [email protected]

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