Seismic Behaviors of Prefabricated Reinforced Concrete Shear Walls Assembled with a Cast-in-Place Vertical Joint

Abstract

The seismic performance of prefabricated reinforced concrete shear walls is a key point in the safety of the whole assembly structure under earthquake actions. In this study, six specimens of reinforced concrete shear walls were assembled with a cast-in-place vertical joint with a straight, L, or convex shape. The specimens were tested using a low cyclic loading test under an axial compression ratio of 0.2 or 0.3. The stress process, failure pattern, and hysteretic curve of each specimen were measured. Combined with a numerical analysis using the finite element method, the variations in the bearing capacity, stiffness degradation, ductility, and energy dissipation capacity of the tested specimens were analyzed. Results showed that all specimens failed in a shear pattern without an obvious failure phenomenon along the vertical joint. The hysteresis curves exhibited an obvious pinch phenomenon and good deformation ability. The seismic behavior decreased in sequence for the shear walls assembled with a cast-in-place vertical joint with a straight, L, or convex shape, while a higher axial compression ratio improved the bearing capacity of the shear walls. The shear wall with an L-shaped vertical joint had similar seismic behavior to that with a straight vertical joint, but the shear wall with a convex vertical joint exhibited a decrease of 8.5% and 10.9% in bearing capacity, 18.2% and 1.2% in ductility, and 13.1% and 20.6% in energy dissipation, respectively, under an axial compression ratio of 0.2 and 0.3. The bearing mechanisms of shear walls with different vertical joints are explained with the numerical analysis of the stress vector maps of concrete and the stress cloud maps of reinforcements at different stress levels.

A Comparative Review of Recent Research Progress in Prefabricated Buildings in China and Other Countries

“…Yang's [38] focused on the seismic performance of precast reinforced concrete shear walls, particularly after the integration of vertical joints. The study varying axial compression ratios to assess their stress processes, failure mechanisms, hysteresis behaviors, load capacity, stiffness degradation, ductility, and energy absorption capabilities.…”

Seismic Performance of Precast Double-Skin Composite Shear Wall with Horizontal Connection Region

“…Shear walls as lateral load-resisting elements have been widely employed in high-rise buildings for decades to withstand the lateral loads induced by earthquakes and wind as well as vertical load induced by gravity [1]. Precast reinforced concrete (RC) shear walls with grouted sleeve connections are predominant in Chinese high-rise prefabricated structural systems [2,3].…”