Seismic Design and Behavior of Ductile Knee-Braced Moment Frames
Publication: Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 137, Issue 5
Abstract
The design and behavior of a ductile structural system called a knee-braced moment frame (KBMF) are presented in this paper. The design of this structural system is based on a capacity-design concept that results in ductile behavior. For this system, the frames are designed so that the knee braces will yield and buckle under seismic loads; this is followed by plastic hinging of beams at the ends of the beam segments outside the knee portions. Through this concept, inelastic activities are confined to the designated elements. The knee braces also provide much less obstruction than the braces of conventional systems, making this structural system architecturally attractive. The design concept of this new structural system is addressed first. Results from an experimental study into the seismic behavior of the proposed system are then presented. Two approximately half-scale KBMF specimens were tested. The load-deformation characteristics obtained from the test indicate that the newly developed system can be a viable alternative to conventional structural systems. Finally, results from dynamic analyses of an example KBMF structure designed by the proposed method are provided.
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Acknowledgments
This research work was supported by funding from the UNSPECIFIEDRoyal Thai Government through King Mongkut’s University of Technology–Asian Institute of Technology joint research program and from the UNSPECIFIEDNational Research Council of Thailand. The authors gratefully acknowledge the support from the above agencies. Generous assistance from the Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited in the fabrication of the test specimens is also gratefully acknowledged. The conclusions in this paper are those of the authors and may not necessarily reflect the views of the sponsors.
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Published In
Journal of Structural Engineering
Volume 137 • Issue 5 • May 2011
Pages: 579 - 588
Copyright
© 2011 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Jul 12, 2009
Accepted: Aug 5, 2010
Published online: Aug 25, 2010
Published in print: May 1, 2011
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