Novel anchor-jointed precast shear wall: testing and validation

Abstract

Precast concrete shear walls are used to resist lateral loads in low- to medium-rise buildings. This paper introduces an innovated joining technique for these precast walls that will reduce the possibility of concrete damage and capital loss during earthquake events. The proposed technique consists of precast panels joined together and to the base using threaded steel anchor bolts, which in turn makes the construction process easier and faster. An experimental programme is conducted to validate this system and characterise its behaviour under lateral loads. Four reduced-scale wall specimens are tested under monotonic in-plane horizontal load. The lateral strength, ductility and possible modes of failure are used to evaluate the connection performance. The joined precast shear wall exhibits a high non-linear deformation without any signs of panel damage, which can be attributed to the gap opening and steel yielding at the connection plane. This indicates that the steel anchor bolts at the connection can be designed to act as structural ductile fuses.