Experimental and numerical study of Steel Corrugated-Plate Coupling Beam connecting shear walls

• Published in: Journal of Building Engineering 2022-08, Vol.54, p.104662, Article 104662
• Main Authors: Zuo, Jia-Qi, Zhu, Bo-Li, Guo, Yan-Lin, Wen, Chen-Bao, Tong, Jing-Zhong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Boundary element; Corrugated steel plate; Coupling beam; Hysteretic test; Monotonic test
• ISSN: 2352-7102; 2352-7102
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jobe.2022.104662

A Steel Corrugated-Plate Coupling Beam (SCPCB) formed by a steel corrugated plate and its boundary elements has found its application as a coupling beam connecting two adjacent shear walls on its two sides. As the most advantage, it could behave as both high lateral-resistant components and good energy dissipating devices even when a thin steel web is required in the design of SCPCBs. This paper presents experimental and numerical studies on the shear-carrying capacity and energy-dissipating capability of SCPCBs. The experimental tests of three specimens are conducted in this study; one focusing on the monotonic behaviors, and the other two on the shear-cyclic behaviors. The loading processes of experimental specimens are simulated numerically via finite element analysis (FEA). Experimental and FEA results show a good agreement, indicating that SCPCBs have high shear capacities, good ductility, and energy dissipation capability even in the thin steel webs of SCPCBs. Besides, an additional parameter investigation of the SCPCBs is carried out via the validated FE model by changing the size of the steel corrugated plate and its boundary elements on two sides. As a result, a lower restraining stiffness ratio of out-of-plane flexural stiffness between the vertical boundary elements to the steel corrugated plate is established for the strength design of SCPCBs. By meeting this lower restraining stiffness ratio, the static and hysterical behaviors of SCPCBs are improved significantly. •The shear behaviors of Steel Corrugated-Plate Coupling Beams (SCPCBs) are studied.•Three tests and 52 numerical simulations of SCPCBs are performed.•SCPCBs have high shear capacity, good ductility and energy dissipation capability.•The effect of boundary elements on shear behavior of SCPCBs is studied by FEA.•Boundary elements have threshold stiffness ratios to constrain corrugated plates.