Even with strong-column-weak-beam design requirements, story mechanisms have been observed in Moment Resisting Frames (MRF), resulting in concentrated drift demands that can result in severe structural damage to drift-sensitive components. Frame-Spine systems can redistribute demands with building height, but near-elastic higher-mode effects tend to contribute to floor accelerations, affecting damage to acceleration-sensitive nonstructural components. To mitigate this tradeoff, Force-Limiting Connections (FLCs) have been proposed to reduce accelerations through yielding components between the Frame and Spine, thereby limiting the magnitude of the forces. This study examines the sizing and placement of FLCs in a four-story Frame-Spine system using stochastic simulations. The T-shape yielding element dimensions in the FLC were modeled as random variables at each floor, and Monte Carlo simulations were used to explore their effect on drifts and accelerations. Results show the dominant role of the first-story FLC on balancing drifts and accelerations, while upper-story devices offered limited benefit. Design recommendations are provided to constrain first-story yielding element dimensions within effective bounds that reduce peak accelerations relative to the baseline Frame-Spine configuration.
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Force Limiting Connections to Mitigate Accelerations in Moment Resisting Frames with Pinned-Base Spines
Mid-rise moment resisting frames (MRF) which utilize supplemental pinned-base spines (spine) to prevent the formation of story mechanisms experience higher mode accelerations at near elastic spectral values. Force Limiting Connections (FLC) can be introduced to reduce the floor accelerations from the higher mode responses while having small impact on first-mode response and maintaining the story mechanism prevention from the spine. Results from nonlinear response history analysis (NRHA) of a 4-story MRF-Spine system show how floor accelerations for higher modes are reduced with the addition of FLC placed between the MRF and spine. Peak effective pseudo accelerations are utilized to show how pseudo spectral accelerations are reduced by the introduction of FLC. Full-scale testing of the 4-storyMRF-Spine structure supports the numerical results of theMRF-Spine andMRF-Spine-FLC numerical analyses. These results show the potential benefits of adding FLC to MRF-Spine systems.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2309829
- PAR ID:
- 10632038
- Publisher / Repository:
- Springer Nature Switzerland
- Date Published:
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 958 to 968
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Concentration of drifts due to story mechanisms can lead to severe structural damage and economic loss. Frame-Spine systems have been proposed to mitigate these effects by redistributing drift demands with building height; however, systems can also exhibit near-elastic higher-mode effects, resulting in forces and floor accelerations that remain largely unreduced by inelastic behavior, thereby adversely affecting acceleration-sensitive nonstructural components and occupants. To address near-elastic higher-mode effects, Force-Limiting Connections (FLCs) have been introduced limiting force transfer between the frame and the spine and reducing acceleration demands through controlled yielding components. This study presents observations from full-scale shake-table testing of a four-story Frame-Spine and a Frame-Spine-FLC specimen at E-Defense. Results highlight higher-mode effects under strong shaking, with emphasis on (1) story shear resisted by the spine, (2) force–deformation behavior of the spine-to-frame connections, and (3) vertical distribution of forces. These findings provide experimental evidence of higher-mode participation in Frame-Spine systems and support the development of improved design guidance and controlling mechanisms.more » « less
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