Evaluation of the Seismic Behavior of RC Buildings through the Direct Modeling of Masonry Infill Walls

Abstract

The direct modeling of masonry infill walls on many buildings, based on damage recorded by various past earthquakes, has become increasingly necessary in order to identify the seismic behavior of these elements, which constitute an important part of reinforced concrete buildings. In this paper, several 3D models were analyzed by the nonlinear static (pushover) method, when ignoring, and when considering, masonry infill walls. The finite element software SAP analyzed the proposed models. These models represent low and mid-rise reinforced concrete buildings infilled with double-leaf hollow bricks. The properties of materials used in Algeria, either in the frame elements or the infill elements, were used. The results obtained were compared according to two parameters, the natural time period of the building and the pushover curve, by varying the values of the dead load and the concrete compressive strength. The results were discussed according to the suggested parameters. The results showed that indirect modeling of such walls, either by taking assumptions embedded in the seismic behavior factor or by means of the macro-modal, can lead to a poor appreciation of the seismic behavior of such buildings. Consequently, direct modeling of walls by the infill of the real void showed acceptable results to some extent. This contributes greatly towards understanding the seismic behavior of this type of building.