Behaviour of precast beam-column stiffened short dowel connections under cyclic loading

Abstract

An experimental investigation was conducted on two types of dry precast concrete connections subjected to reverse cyclic loading. Three one-third scale exterior beam-column assemblies representing a portion of a frame subjected to reverse cyclic loading were tested, including one monolithic specimen and two precast specimens. Displacement controlled loading system was adopted. A data acquisition system (DEWE-43) was used to record the load and displacement signals. The performance of the three connections with respect to strength, load displacement relationship, ductility and energy dissipation was studied. Test data showed that the monolithic specimen was found to perform better when compared to the precast specimens in terms of strength. All the three connections exhibited ductile behaviour and satisfactory energy dissipation capacity.