Title: Shear Strength of Reinforced Concrete Vertical Wall Segments under Seismic Loading

Author(s): Rou-Ling Yeh, Chien-Chuang Tseng, and Shyh-Jiann Hwang

Publication: Structural Journal

Volume: 115

Issue: 5

Appears on pages(s): 1485-1494

Keywords: quasi-static cyclic loading test; reinforced concrete; shear strength; shear walls with openings; vertical wall segment

DOI: 10.14359/51702377

Date: 9/1/2018

Abstract:
To provide practical functions, reinforced concrete (RC) walls in residential buildings often have door or window openings that divide the RC wall into different segments. This study conducted experiments on four RC wall specimens with openings. By observing the crack development within the specimen, the effect of special horizontal reinforcement on the shear strength of vertical wall segments is assessed. Experimental observations show that placing special horizontal shear reinforcement or carbon fiber tapes above and below vertical wall segments at the edges of walls can satisfy nodal force balance at these locations and effectively increase the shear strength of these vertical wall segments. In addition to reporting the experimental results, this study compares the shear strength obtained from experiments and that computed based on the ACI 318-14 Building Code, and proposes an appropriate strut-and-tie model for predicting the shear strength.