Seismic performance of RC interior wide beam-column joints

Abstract

In this paper, the effects of the axial compression ratio, concrete strength and beam width to column width ratio on the seismic performance of interior wide beam-column joints were investigated by conducting quasi-static tests on seven half-scale specimens. Test results showed that the seven specimens had a good energy dissipation capacity. The bonding performance of the longitudinal bars anchored outside the core column was poor, which experienced bond slip with the concrete during the test. For the specimens with a small beam width to column width ratio, increasing the axial compression ratio reduced the damage to concrete in the joint core. With an increasing width of the beam, the damage to the joint core outside of column was aggravated. Furthermore, the shear strength of the joint obtained from the ACI-319 and GB 50011-2010 was compared with the test results, and results showed that those two codes underestimated the shear strength of the interior wide beam-column joints. Finally, the 3D numerical model of the test joints was established using MSC Marc finite element software and validated based on the test results.