Silvia Costanzo

Remarks on Seismic Design Rules of EC8 for Inverted-V CBFs

Chevron concentrically braced frames (C-CBFs) are expected to provide limited ductility in the framework of Eurocode 8: differently from North American codes, lower values of behavior factors are recommended by EN 1998 for C-CBFs than for other concentric bracing configurations (namely diagonal and cross bracings). The research presented in this paper is aimed at revising the design rules and requirements provided for by EN 1998-1 for C-CBFs in order to improve the ductility and the dissipative capacity of this structural system. The proposed design criteria are validated by means of nonlinear dynamic analyses performed on a study case. The results confirm the effectiveness of developed design procedure.

Experimental Tests on Extended Stiffened End-Plate Joints within Equal Joints Project

Bolted extended stiffened end-plate beam-to-column joints are commonly used for steel moment resisting frames in seismic areas. In the framework of European codes, EN 1993:1-8 provides the design rules and the analytical models to predict the mechanical behavior of the joints. On the other hand, EN 1998-1 specifies the required performance for seismic resistant joints. Within EQUALJOINTS project design rules have been developed and experimental tests were carried out to seismically prequalify extended stiffened end-plate joints. In this paper the proposed design rules are discussed and results of the experimental tests are described.