Experimental investigation on performance of sandwich wall infill in framed structure

Abstract

The sandwich wall infill in framed structures is a layered structural system made of thermally insulated core material (EPS layer) with concrete layers on either side reinforced to act monolithically. It is the best replacement for concrete, brick, and hollow block walls because of its low self-weight, few connection joints, and easy and fast installation on site. It also has good thermal and noise insulation properties, a better load-carrying capacity, and was found to be cost-effective. This layered system is resistant to alternate cycles of heat and cold, with less penetration from destructive rays and external forces. For this experimental study, sandwich wall panel specimens (0.75 × 0.75 × 0.1 m) are cast with an external layer of concrete and an Expanded Polystyrene layer as a core, varying its thickness (25 mm, 50 mm, 75 mm), and these layers are bonded together by adequate steel reinforcement. A wall is tested to evaluate its structural performance in the context of ultimate strength capacity, load–deflection profiles, cracking patterns, and failure modalities compared with the conventional wall system. The wall specimen with a minimum core thickness of 25 mm has a maximum load carrying capacity of 504 kN, which attains 98.6% of the ultimate load of a conventional wall specimen, and it also possesses very little deflection of 0.37 mm in the front side of the panel. The maximum strains observed in the concrete layer and reinforced steel bar are 0.0012 and 0.0024, respectively. The current study demonstrates that lightweight sandwich wall panels are a superior replacement for traditional wall systems.