Prediction of Ultimate Strength and Deflection of Double-Curvature Low Rise Shear Walls

Abstract

This study elucidates the prediction of ultimate strength and corresponding deflection of low rise shear walls subjected to lateral load. The scope of the study is limited to low-rise shear walls with height to length ratios not exceeding two, and walls due to lateral load are deformed in a shape of double-curvature. This study is based on limited knowledge of the shear behavior of low-rise shear walls subjected to double-curvature bending. In this study, the wall shear behavior as the ultimate shear strength and corresponding deflection of walls is predicted according to the softened strut-and-tie model. Moreover, the corresponding lateral deflection of walls is estimated by superposition of its flexibility sources such as flexural, shear and slip. Theoretical analyses reveal that the calculated results of the proposed procedure correlate reasonably with previously reported experimental results.