Horizontal Stabilisation of Sheathed Timber Frame Structures Using Plastic Design Methods – Introducing a Handbook Part 4: Design in Ultimate Limit State

Abstract

In this part 4, the horizontal load-carrying capacity of fully and partially anchored sheathed timber frame walls subjected to arbitrary vertical loads is presented for different models. For fully anchored walls, the elastic method is summarised (for comparison reasons) and a corresponding simple plastic method is presented. For partially anchored walls, three different plastic methods are presented: (1) no contact forces between adjacent sheets occur; (2) contact forces between the sheets; and (3) contact forces between the sheets and also with stud-to-rail joints taken into account. All the proposed plastic models are based on plastic characteristics of the sheathing-to-framing joints and that a plastic lower bound method is used. The proposed models are simple and flexible and can be applied to different wall geometries, boundary conditions, loading configurations, and number of storeys. The developed plastic design methods for fully and partially anchored sheathed timber frame shear walls have been verified through extensive analytical and experimental studies. This part is the last one in a series introducing the handbook to the international community.