Cyclic tests on concrete-filled composite plate shear walls with enhanced C-channels

Abstract

Concrete-filled composite plate shear walls (CF-CPSWs) using enhanced C-channels (ECs) have been developed as the shear walls in nuclear and high-rise buildings. This paper performed cyclic tests on six CF-CPSWs with ECs (CF-CPSW-ECs) to study their seismic behaviours. Parameters covered in the testing program were spacing of ECs (S1), thickness of faceplate (ts), aspect ratio (H/W), layout of C-channel, and dense layout of ECs at the root of specimen (S2). Test results revealed that under horizontal cyclic shear loads all the CF-CPSW-ECs failed in flexure-governed mode with characteristics of yielding and local buckling of faceplate and side plate, tensile fracture at the corner welding, and crushing of concrete core. Increasing the faceplate thickness is the most effective way to improve the seismic resistance of CF-CPSW-ECs. Reducing the aspect ratio significantly improves the seismic resistance of CF-CPSW-ECs, but significantly reduces its deformation capacity. Installing the ECs with their web in horizontal direction and reducing the spacing of ECs at the bottom cross section also improve the seismic resistance but marginally influenced the shear strength and stiffness of CF-CPSW-ECs. Developed theoretical models predicted reasonably well the skeleton lateral shear force versus displacement behaviours of CF-CPSW-ECs.