Cyclic loading test of abnormal joints in SRC frame-bent main building structure

Due to functional requirements, SRC column-RC beam abnormal joints with characteristics of strong beam weak column, variable column section, unequal beam height and staggered height exist in the Steel reinforced concrete (SRC) frame-bent main building structure of thermal power plant (TPP). This paper presents the experimental results of these abnormal joints through cyclic loading tests on five specimens with scaling factor of 1/5. The staggered height and whether adding H-shaped steel in beam or not were changing parameters of specimens. The failure patterns, bearing capacity, energy dissipation and ductile performance were analyzed. In addition, the stress mechanism of the abnormal joint was discussed based on the diagonal strut model. The research results showed that the abnormal exterior joints occurred shear failure and column end hinge flexural failure; reducing beam height through adding H-shaped steel in the beam of abnormal exterior joint could improve the crack resistance and ductility; the abnormal interior joints with different staggered heights occurred column ends flexural failure; the joint with larger staggered height had the higher bearing capacity and stiffness, but lower ductility. The concrete compression strut mechanism is still applicable to the abnormal joints in TPP, but it is affected by the abnormal characteristics.