Effects of postcast connection locations on the seismic performance of precast concrete frame joints

Abstract

SummaryFor the precast structure with postcast connections, the location of the connection is usually the midspan of the beam, joint core, and beam end. However, the postcast connections located at the midspan of the beam or the joint core would increase the difficulty of construction because of the large dimension of the precast components or reinforcement congestion at joint core, respectively. A connection located at the beam end could decrease the seismic performance the energy dissipation mechanism being disturbed. To balance the requirements on the transportation, construction, and seismic performance, the connection is proposed to be located at one plastic hinge length from the beam end. A quasi‐static test was conducted on three 6 m × 3 m beam‐column joints, including two precast joints and a monolithic joint. The results show that the joint with connections located outside the plastic hinge zone had good seismic performance. When the connection located at the beam end, the ductility, strength, and energy dissipation reduced 8%, 10%, and 30%, respectively. To optimize the postcast location, finite element analysis was conducted and 2h was suggested for the postcast location according to the analysis results.