Abstract
The application of steel castings in earthquake engineering has increased significantly in recent years, and steel casting technology has been proven as a viable solution for the design and development of energy dissipative yielding elements. The first-generation of cast steel replaceable modular yielding links were recently proposed as an off-the-shelf energy dissipative product line for use in steel eccentrically braced frames (EBF). The performance of the links was validated through an extensive full-scale experimental program. These links featured a design approach in which the effective length of all links across the product line was identical. As a result of this design approach, a wide range was observed in the ductility capacity, with the smaller- to medium-capacity links achieving larger rotation capacities than the larger-capacity links. This paper presents the design and experimental validation of an alternative design of cast steel replaceable yielding links where, rather than ensuring equal length across the product line, a similar link ductility capacity is targeted for all link sizes. The new cast steel links with targeted ductility capacity are presented, and the performance of two link sizes is validated through large-scale experiments to confirm that the proposed design achieved the targeted design ductility. Each link size was tested twice: once as a standalone element and once as part of a one-story EBF system that imparted a large axial load to the link. Based on the results, the effect of axial load on the performance of EBF links is discussed.
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Data Availability Statement
Some or all data, models, or code generated or used during the study are proprietary or confidential in nature and may only be provided with restrictions.
Acknowledgments
The authors acknowledge the support of the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) (CRD 505341) and Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE VIP II-27058). The authors would also like to acknowledge the support from Professor Giovanni Graselli’s research group at the University of Toronto in using the GOM Correlate DIC system.
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© 2023 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 23, 2022
Accepted: Jan 10, 2023
Published online: Apr 26, 2023
Published in print: Jul 1, 2023
Discussion open until: Sep 26, 2023
ASCE Technical Topics:
- Axial loads
- Ductility
- Earthquake engineering
- Energy dissipation
- Engineering fundamentals
- Engineering materials (by type)
- Engineering mechanics
- Frames
- Geotechnical engineering
- Material mechanics
- Material properties
- Materials engineering
- Mechanical properties
- Metals (material)
- Methodology (by type)
- Research methods (by type)
- Seismic design
- Static loads
- Statics (mechanics)
- Steel
- Steel frames
- Steel structures
- Structural engineering
- Structural members
- Structural systems
- Structures (by type)
- Thermodynamics
- Validation
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Cited by
- Pedram Mortazavi, Oh-Sung Kwon, Constantin Christopoulos, Seismic Performance Assessment of Steel EBFs with Conventional and Replaceable Yielding Links Designed with ASCE 7-16, Journal of Structural Engineering, 10.1061/JSENDH.STENG-13093, 150, 5, (2024).