Finite element modelling and investigation of the behaviour of elastic infilled frames under monotonic loading

In this paper the behaviour of single-storey one-bay infilled frames under monotonic lateral loading is studied and investigated analytically, assuming linearly elastic material laws. To this purpose a precise finite-element micromodel is formulated and used, by considering contact interface conditions between the frame and the infill. The analytical investigation is carried out through an extended comparative parametric study and is focused on the quantitative influence of certain simplified modelling assumptions and several critical modelling parameters on the response of the system. In the analytical investigation, the effects of the alternative modelling of the interface conditions, the density of the discretization mesh, the size of the friction coefficient, the relative beam/column stiffness, the relative frame/infill size and the orthotropy of the infill panel are evaluated, providing a detailed insight and a better quantitative understanding of the basic features of the system response. It is concluded that all these modelling parameters considerably affect the behaviour of the examined infilled frames, except for the parameter describing the infill’s orthotropy. The conclusions obtained can be further extended in the case of multi-storey systems.