Seismic response control of frame structure braced with SMA tendons

Abstract

This paper presents studies of seismic response control of a frame structure braced with SMA (Shape Memory Alloy) tendons through both numerical and experimental approaches. Based on the Brinson one-dimensional constitutive law for SMAs, a two-story frame structure braced diagonally with SMA tendons is used as an example to simulate numerically the vibration control process. By considering the temperature, different initial states and thermal properties of the SMA tendon, and the variable intensity and frequency of earthquake input, the parameters of the system were analyzed during the numerically simulation. The time histories of the displacement and hysteretic loops of the SMA tendons were simulated under earthquake ground motion by using finite element method (FEM). To validate the efficiency of the simulation, a shaking table test for the frame structure was conducted. Both numerical simulation and experimental results show that the actively controlled martensite SMA tendons can effectively suppress the vibration of the multi-story frame structure during an earthquake.