Seismic behavior of light-gauge cold-formed steel stud walls under monotonic and cyclic loading

Abstract

Light-gauge structures framed with cold-formed steel (CFS) are considered a suitable alternative to the traditional hot-rolled or built-up steel framing as a primary structural system. In this study, the seismic behavior of light-gauge CFS stud walls is evaluated through experimental tests on two stages to investigate the failure modes, load capacities, initial stiffness , ductility ratios and response modification factors. The first stage is testing specimens under monotonic load, while the second one is testing specimens under cyclic load conditions. The results revealed that using cement board and ferro-cement board sheathing had adverse effects on the loading capacity (up to 80% reduction in ultimate load capacity for specimen with ferro-cement board) as well as the initial stiffness, compared to specimens with steel sheathing. However, specimens with cement board and ferro-cement board sheathing exhibited lesser instability in their framing members at the ultimate load compared to specimens with steel sheathing. Furthermore, the screw connections between sheathing and steel framing members resulted in a significant reduction on the overall behavior, particularly for specimens with cement board and ferro-cement board sheathing. Meanwhile, the specimen with steel sheathing on both sides reported a higher loading and energy dissipation capacities. • Summary for existing experimental researches data regarding light-gauge cold-formed steel stud walls. • Experimental tests are conducted on full scale specimens. • Specimens are subjected to both monotonic and cyclic loading. • Loading capacities, ductility ratio, initial stiffness and response modification factors for each model are provided.