Shaking table comparative test and associated study of a stepped wall-frame structure

A new structural system called a stepped wall-frame structure is proposed in this study to solve the bottom yielding problem of RC frames, which widely occurred during previous earthquakes such as the Wenchuan and Yushu earthquakes in China. A 1/5 scale ordinary RC frame model and a stepped wall-frame model were subjected to shake table motions together to study the seismic behavior of the new structural system. This paper presents the dynamic characteristics, the seismic responses and the failure and collapse mechanism of the two models under low, moderate and high intensity shaking. The test results and further analysis demonstrate that the seismic performance of stepped wall-frame structures is superior to ordinary RC frames in terms of the well-controlled deformation pattern and more uniformly distributed damage. The stepped wall can effectively suppress the bottom yielding mechanism, and is simple, economical and practical for engineering practice.