Seismic behavior of coupled shear wall structures with various concrete and steel coupling beams

Abstract

SummaryA novel 2‐level yielding steel coupling beam (TYSCB) has been developed to enhance the seismic performance of coupled shear wall systems. The TYSCB consists of a shear‐yielding beam designed to yield first under minor earthquakes and a bend‐yielding beam designed to yield under severe earthquakes. A comparison of seismic behavior of 4 20‐storey coupled shear wall structures with reinforced concrete coupling beams, complete steel coupling beams, fuse steel coupling beams, and TYSCB is presented. The dimensions and force‐displacement curves of these coupling beams are first designed. Nonlinear dynamic analyses on these structures are carried out under minor and severe earthquakes. The seismic behavior of these models is studied by comparing their storey shear forces, storey drift ratios and ductility demands. The results show that the base shear and storey drift of the structure with TYSCB under both minor and severe earthquakes are less than those of structures with concrete coupling beams and complete steel coupling beams. Furthermore, the ductility demand of coupled shear walls with TYSCB subjected to severe earthquakes can be greatly released compared with those using fuse steel coupling beams. This indicates that the proposed TYSCB has a better balance between ductility demand and energy dissipation, compared to traditional steel coupling beams.