Experimentally-validated modelling of thin RC sandwich walls subjected to seismic loads

•No reliable modelling technique for RC sandwich panels are available in the literature.•An experimentally validated modelling technique for RC sandwich panels is proposed.•The modelling technique makes use of a recently proposed concrete damage model.•The modelling technique is suitable for capturing the experimental non-linear cyclic response.•The modelling technique could be potentially used also by practitioners.

Modelling the seismic performance of an innovative structural system consisting in lightly-reinforced concrete sandwich panels is the subject of this paper. Thin shotcrete layers are sprayed on the two surfaces of a polystyrene panel (support panel), after placing on each surface a small-diameter wire mesh. Such a system is appealing for developing countries, as it markedly reduces the construction cost, and provides excellent thermal and structural properties. Formulating a nonlinear model is, therefore, instrumental in investigating the cyclic behaviour of such a system, as required by seismic analysis. The proposed model incorporates a recently-introduced concrete damage model, and is validated through experimental tests, concerning both the force–displacement response and the progression of the damage.