Seismic performance of discontinuous cover-plate connection for prefabricated steel plate shear wall

Abstract

In this study, a discontinuous cover plate connection (DCPC) was proposed for a prefabricated steel plate shear wall with a beam-only-connected infill plate. This design is suitable for prefabricated high-rise steel structures and assumes that bolt slippage does not precede the yielding of the steel plate tension field. Three 1/3-scale specimens were designed, and the hysteretic behaviour, skeleton curves, energy dissipation capacity, ductility, and failure modes were investigated using quasi-static tests and finite element analyses. Then, the hysteretic behaviour, ductility, and energy dissipation capacity of the prefabricated steel plate shear wall were compared to those of a traditional welded steel plate shear wall through finite element analyses. The results showed that the prefabricated steel plate shear wall with a DCPC had good hysteretic behaviour, energy dissipation capacity, and ductility. Further, the bolt pre-tightening force in the connection was directly proportional to the thickness of the infill plate. The ultimate lateral bearing capacity of the prefabricated steel plate shear wall was slightly less than that of the welded steel plate shear wall. In addition, the prefabricated steel plate shear wall can be assembled rapidly and simply on-site, and it provides a good post-earthquake repairable function.