Seyed Hamed Hossein - Department of Structure and Material, University Technology of Malaysia, Skudi, Johor Bahru, Malaysia,۸۱۳۰۰,
Suhaimi Abu Bakar - Department of Civil and Structural, National University of Malaysia, UKM, Bangi, Selangor,Malaysia, ۴۳۶۰۰,

Vertical Shear Link (VSL), known as steel shear panel is proposed as an efficient passive control system against earthquakes in multi-story construction. VSL applied to an invert V-brace and reinforced concrete beams absorbs earthquake energy by yielding of steel, while other members remain in an elastic stage. Recent studies have been applied the VSL to Reinforced Concrete (RC) frame with eccentric steel bracing to investigate the seismic response of RC structures and plastic hinge formations, where, the ductility and stiffness of RC frames under a lateral load need to be investigated. Hence, the aim of this research is to examine the stiffness, ductility and energy absorption of RC frame using VSL. An experimental study is conducted on a conventional RC frame compared with a VSL retrofitting system. The test results are used to validate Finite Element (FE) models using ABAQUS software and further parametric studies are developed to evaluate the effect of VSL shear capacity in a RC structure with different VSL sections. The experimental findings show that VSL improved the behaviour of the RC frame by controlling the axial force in braces using the VSL system. FE analysis indicates that the shear force capacity of RC frame using VSL system increased up to ۱۷۰% compared to the conventional RC frame. It can be concluded that the VSL system could effectively absorb the lateral force applied to the RC frame; where the shear yielding mechanism of the VSL could prevent the propagation of buckling of the braces beside ductility and high lateral stiffness..

eccentricity steel brace, vertical shear link, retrofit RC frame, FE, ABAQUS