Seismic performance analysis and damage evaluation of shear wall and frame shear wall structures under multi-dimensional excitations

Abstract

To systematically explore the seismic performance of shear walls and frame-shear wall structures under multi-directional seismic actions, three shear wall specimens and one frame-shear wall specimen are fabricated and the quasi-static loading tests are carried out. The shear wall specimens are loaded in oblique direction, in-plane direction, and out-of-plane direction, while the frame-shear wall specimen is loaded in the in-plane direction. The macroscopic damage phenomena of the specimens are analyzed to investigate the influence of the typical performance indicators such as crack propagation, hysteresis curves, skeleton curves, and stiffness degradation curves. Subsequently, the equation for calculating comprehensive damage indices, which can accurately reveal the damage evolution process and final damage severity of shear wall components, is proposed. Based on the calibrated experiments, the appropriate finite element software is used to simulate quasi-static loading from multiple angles on shear wall and frame-shear wall specimens. The time-history analysis are conducted on the frame-shear wall structural system from multiple angles to comparatively analyze the seismic performance and failure modes of the two types of structures under different loading angles. The results indicate that the bearing capacity, the energy dissipation capacity and the lateral stiffness of shear walls and frame-shear wall structures decrease as the loading angle increases. Significant changes in crack development and failure modes are observed under out-of-plane loading for both types of structures, with the structural damage degree increasing with larger angles. There is an urgent need for further analysis and enhancement of the seismic performance of these structures under multi-directional loading conditions.