Steel slit shear walls with an efficient geometry

This paper presents the results of a study to improve the seismic behavior of steel shear walls with vertical slits. In this system, the steel plate segments between the slits behave as a series of flexural links, which provide a fairly ductile response without the need for heavy stiffening. An efficient slit geometry is proposed, which assures simultaneous yielding of the plate along the vertical links and prevents strain localization. Experimental study and finite element modeling are used to verify the proposed steel slit shear wall and to study its nonlinear behavior under monotonic and cyclic loading. Out-of-plane buckling of the wall and the effects of buckling restraining clamps on this phenomenon is also studied. The results show satisfactory performance of this system, when used as a seismic force resisting system. The important geometric parameters that result in the desired behavior of the wall, including appropriate stiffness and strength, as well as stable hysteresis curve, are determined and evaluated.