Nonlinear seismic performance of code designed perforated steel plate shear walls

Nonlinear seismic performances of code designed Perforated Steel Plate Shear Walls (P-SPSW) were studied. Three multi-storey (4-, 8-, and 12-storey) P-SPSWs were designed according to Canadian seismic provisions and their performance was evaluated using time history analysis for ground motions compatible with Vancouver response spectrum. The selected code designed P-SPSWs exhibited excellent seismic performance with high ductility and strength. The current code equation was found to provide a good estimation of the shear strength of the perforated infill plate, especially when the infill plate is yielded. The applicability of the strip model, originally proposed for solid infill plate, was also evaluated for P-SPSW and two different strip models were studied. It was observed that the strip model with strip widths equal to center to center diagonal distance between each perforation line could reasonably predict the inelastic behavior of unstiffened P-SPSWs. The strip model slightly underestimated the initial stiffness; however, the ultimate strength was predicted well. Furthermore, applicability of simple shear-flexure beam model for determination of fundamental periods of P-SPSWs was studied.