Stiffness and strength degradation of steel shear walls having an arbitrarily-located opening

Openings in steel plate shear walls (SPSWs) in buildings are provided for architectural reasons as well as for access requirements. Despite the reduction of stiffness and strength in panels with an opening being well-understood, further studies are essential in order to determine both the mechanism and the degree of this degradation, as well as its dependency on the location and the size of the opening. To accomplish this aim, a non-linear finite element analysis is used in this paper to study the behaviour of both stiffened and unstiffened SPSWs with a single rectangular opening. The size and location of the opening are varied from model to model in order to determine their influences on the stiffness and strength of the system. Based on the results obtained, the strength and stiffness degradation of unstiffened panels are affected adversely by the location of the opening. In contrast, the re-location of an opening of a specific size within the panel area in stiffened panels does not appear to influence this degradation, so that the stiffness and strength deterioration are not a function of the location of the opening. As expected, both stiffened and unstiffened panels experience a progressive reduction in their stiffness and strength with an increase of the size of the opening. It is demonstrated further that with an increase in the opening ratio (width to height), the energy absorbed by the system arising from seismic loading considerations in both stiffened and unstiffened SPSWs show a linearly decreasing trend; this trend being less stiff for stiffened panels. Unstiffened SPSWs with a central opening experience the least energy absorption. It is also shown that the absorption of energy is substantially higher in stiffened panels when compared with their otherwise identical, but unstiffened, counterparts.

► Quantifying degradation of stiffness and strength of plate shear walls with openings.
► Quantifying the degradation as function of size and location of opening.
► Comprehensive set of results using non-linear FE analysis validated experimentally.
► Energy absorption under seismic loading also quantified.
► Design guidance presented for seismic consideration of plate walls with openings.