Dynamic Time-History Analysis of Eleven-Story Two-Bay Precast Concrete Frame with UHPC-Based Connections

Abstract

Using ultra-high performance concrete (UHPC) to connect precast concrete components could simplify installation process and accelerate the on-site construction over traditional connection approaches. To study the seismic performance of precast concrete frame with UHPC-based connections, the time- history analysis on an eleven-story two-bay frame model was performed using finite element method. The plastic damage of concrete, reinforcement strengthening after yielding, structural damping and interface contact characteristics were considered in the proposed model. The model was validated by test result. The inter-story drift, failure mechanism, displacement time-history, restoring force time-history laws were determined. The results revealed that when the peak ground acceleration (PGA) was 0.035g, the frame model behaved in elastic state. When the PGA increased to 0.11g and 0.22g, the model transited to elastic-plastic state. Furthermore, the maximum inter-story drift under the PGA of 0.22g met the elastic-plastic inter-story drift limit of 2.0% in GB50011-2010. The plastic hinges collectively occurred at the beam ends, exhibiting a beam sidesway mechanism. The failure of the model was governed by concrete crushing and yielding of longitudinal bars at the beam ends. And, the columns and joints remained intact. In this context, a strong joint-weak component design philosophy was achieved. The results indicated that the time-history analysis method provided an efficient tool for predicting the structural response of precast concrete frames with UHPC-based connections subjected to earthquake actions.