Dynamic Experiment and Numerical Simulation of a Full Scale Steel Frame with Viscous Dampers

This paper presents a dynamic nonlinear numerical simulation of a 5-story full-scale steel frame structure based on Perform-3D. Flexibility-based fiber element and Maxwell model are adopted for structure member simulation after a post analysis of the shaking table test of a 4-story full-scale steel frame. The author simulates the low cyclic reciprocating load test for the steel members with fiber element and plastic hinge element, and also analyzes the fiber division and length of plastic hinge. Analytical results of the seismic responses under medium and severe ground motions are compared with the experiments, indicating a good simulation of the nonlinear behaviour of the steel frame with viscous dampers by using flexibility-based fiber element and Maxwell model when structural nonlinearity is limited by dampers. FOREWORD A shaking table test of a full-scale 5-story steel frame with viscous dampers on E-Defense as well as the 2009 Blind Analysis Contest was conducted by National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention (NIED) of Japan in 2009[1], which was the follow-up of the 2007 Blind Analysis Contest for a full-scale 4-story conventional steel frame that was shaken to collapse[2]. The contest required the participants to predict the response of the shaking table test and submit the results of the analysis, including responses of the structure under different ground motions. The accuracy of the analysis was judged by the comparison with the shaking table test data. The paper will focus on the shaking table test and the inelastic numerical simulation method. The nonlinear parameters of the steel frame are studied based on the post analysis of the 2007 Blind Analysis Contest and applied in the 2009’s contest to estimate the dynamic response of the steel frame with viscous dampers 1 FULL SCALE MODEL 1.1 E-Defense shaking table