Test Research on the Mechanical Properties of Wood Frame Shear Walls under Lateral Load

Abstract

Wood frame shear walls are commonly used as the primary component of the lateral load resisting system.The research on the performance of the walls under lateral load is a key point in light wood structures. The stiffness of load spreader has a direct impact on the failure mode and lateral resistance of wood frame shear walls in shear wall tests.Furthermore,it is more affected when hold-downs are not fixed at the ends of the walls and openings.A new load spreader setup is designed and used to conduct the test research under monotonic and cyclic protocol.The test specimens are three full size wood frames shear walls;one is a standard wall,one with door opening and the other one with a window opening.The failure mode,shear strength,ultimate displacement and lateral displacement stiffness are studied.The test results of wood fram shear walls with three different types of load spreader are analysed.