Experimental Investigation of Light-Gauge Steel Plate Shear Walls for the Seismic Retrofit of Buildings

Keywords: Steel plate shear walls (SPSW).   Retrofit.   Light-guage steel plates.   Energy dissipation.

Abstract: This report presents experimental investigations into the seismic adequacy of steel plate shear walls (SPSW) utilizing light-gauge cold-rolled infill plates as a more viable option for retrofit scenarios.  The interest in this type of system is that it would allow for an easily-installed retrofit, while being minimally disruptive to the functions in an existing building - especially in the context of hospital structures where modular systems for the rearrangement of floor plans are highly desirable.  The report describes the prototype and specimen designs, experimental set-up, and results of three light-gauge SPSW concepts.  Additionally, the report proposes a design procedure for SPSW based on the application of plastic analysis to an accepted analytical model for the representation of SPSW.