Seismic performance of the RBS connection with trapezoidal corrugated web (TCW-RBS)

Abstract

This paper presents an evaluation of the performance of the trapezoidal corrugated web (TCW) reduced beam section (RBS) connection under cyclic loading. A series of experiments were conducted on three TCW-RBS specimens. The tests were carried out up to a 10% story drift ratio, and it was observed that the connection met the code-based limitations for a reduction in strength until reaching an 8% drift, surpassing the existing criterion for qualified connections in special moment frames. Additionally, nonlinear finite element analysis was utilized to investigate the influence of web angles on the behavior of TCW-RBS connections. The findings revealed that increasing the web angle resulted in a decrease in the maximum moment by up to 11%, while simultaneously enhancing the connection's ductility by up to 37%. Furthermore, the axial strain results in the web of the beam indicated that the corrugated web had a negligible impact on the flexural behavior of the connection due to the accordion effect. Notably, the maximum strain values in the flanges near the column face were three times lower than those in the reduced section zone, contributing to a reduced sensitivity of the welds to potential fractures.