Experimental Studies On Steel Encased Transfer Beam And SRC Column Connections

In recent years, high-rise buildings with complicated structures and functional diversities are flourishing rapidly all over the world. Most of them use steel reinforced concrete (SRC) structure, especially in transfer story that can redistribute the loads from closely spaced columns above to widely spaced columns below so as to facilitate the architectural layout in providing large column-free open space at the lower stories. Transfer story connection playing an important role in a high-rise hybrid structure can ensure strength and stiffness of the whole structure. Although many researches have been conducted on steel reinforced concrete connections during the past decades, they are almost concentrated in frame beam-column connections. Up to now little work has been reported on transfer story connections for high-rise structures.A type of steel encased transfer beam and SRC column connections is introduced, according to the design and construction of a practical project. The section of transfer beam includes two joist steel sections and the RC transfer column is encased with a cruciform steel section. The objective of this thesis is to assess the seismic performance of this transfer story connection by conducting model test and finite element analysis.Two models of the transfer story connection, with1:3scales to the prototype connection, were experimentally evaluated under vertical loading and horizontal reversed cyclic loading. The connection behaviors such as failure modes, strength, stiffness, hysteretic curves, ductility, energy dissipation capacity and strains of the rebar and the steels were analyzed. The testing results show that this type of transfer story connection studied can provide adequate strength, excellent ductility and energy dissipation and can also meet the strength and stiffness requirements of the practical project.Finite element analysis using commercial software ANSYS is conducted to provide insight understanding and the comparison with the test results. The comparison indicates that the analysis results agree well with the experiment data.In conclusion, this type of steel encased transfer beam and SRC column connections has excellent strength capacity and energy dissipation and can meet the design requirements of the practical project as well as provide references for transfer story connection researches and engineering applications.