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An innovative dual system for new structures or for the retrofit of

precast concrete industrial buildings


Massimo Latour1,a *, Marilena Paolillo1,b, Gianvittorio Rizzano1,c
and Mariacristina Vergato1,d
University of Salerno, Via Giovanni Paolo II, 132 Fisciano (SA)

mlatour@unisa.it, bpaolillomarilena@virgilio.it, cg.rizzano@unisa.it, dvergatomcristina@libero.it

Keywords: Prefabricated, Concrete, Industrial Buildings, Dampers, Seismic Analysis.

Abstract
In this work, the possibility to improve the seismic behaviour of precast concrete buildings is
examined by proposing the adoption of a dual system composed by the internal pendular columns
and the external walls. To this scope, it is provided to substitute the joints classically adopted at the
top of the panels with a connection able to work as a slider with vertical axis and to insert at the
bottom of the walls two or more hysteretic dampers working on the uplift of the cladding panels
occurring under seismic actions. With this approach, with respect to the classical design philosophy,
due to the participation of the cladding panels, the structure is stiffened, obtaining a reduction of the
lateral drifts under serviceability limit states, and its seismic behavior is improved due to the
additional source of energy dissipation represented by the dampers located at the base of the walls.
The effectiveness of the suggested approach is verified on a case study designed following the
proposed approach.

1. Introduction
The recent seismic events occurred in Italy, in Abruzzo (2009) and Emilia-Romagna (2012) regions,
have produced the failure of a high number of industrial buildings bringing to the attention of
manufacturers and researchers the issues related to the safety under seismic events of precast
concrete structures. Among the various shortcomings evidenced after these seismic events, one of
the most significant reasons of collapse has been due to the poor behaviour exhibited by the joints
traditionally adopted to fasten the top of the cladding panels to the perimeter beams of the internal
framing. In fact, during these earthquakes, as reported in [1], in many cases the facades of industrial
structures failed out-of-plane due to the tearing of the top connections, which are the only
constraints adopted in normal practice to fix the cladding panels to the internal framing (Fig.1).
Such connections, ideally, are conceived to uncouple the in-plane motion of the cladding panels
from that of the internal structure and to fix the out-of-plane overturning of the walls. To this scope,
they are realized with two sliding guides, one positioned on the top of the perimeter beams and the
other one on the inner face of the external walls, and with particular types of hammer head bolts
placed inside the channels to absorb the out-of-plane actions. Even though these systems have been
widely used in practice, after the most recent earthquakes, an unforeseen behavior has been
observed. In fact, the eccentricity existing between cladding panels and perimeter beams of the
internal framing has led, during the seismic motion, to the arisement of kinematic mechanisms not
compatible with the movements allowed by the connectors. As a consequence, the typical failure
modes exhibited by such connections have been essentially characterized by the fracture of the bolt
shank or by the tearing of the edges of the steel channels, due to the locking of the bolt heads within
the horizontal and vertical guides. In addition, contrarily to what is usually assumed in the design of
prefabricated industrial buildings, locking of connections has produced also the collaboration
between cladding panels and internal structure leading, as a matter of fact, to a reduction of the

natural period of vibration with a consequent increase of the seismic actions to be resisted by the
internal columns [2,4].

Figure 1. Classical Connector for Cladding Panels of Industrial Buildings [1]

Within this framework, in this paper, an innovative system able to overcome the problems related to
the out-of-plane failure of the walls is presented. In particular, it is proposed to exploit the external
cladding panels, which traditionally are considered non-structural elements, as a seismic resistant
structure to be properly connected to the internal framing in order to obtain a dual system. This
coupling is obtained by substituting the traditional joints at the top of the walls with a connection
able to constrain the horizontal in-plane and out-of-plane behaviours of the panels and to work as a
sliding guide in the vertical direction in order to allow the rocking motion. In addition, it is
proposed to insert at the bottom of the walls two or more hysteretic dampers already tested in a
previous activity, namely XL-Stubs [3], working on the uplift of the cladding panels occurring
under seismic actions. With this approach, with respect to the classical design philosophy, due to the
participation of the cladding panels, the structure is stiffened, obtaining a reduction of the lateral
drifts under serviceability limit states, and its seismic behavior is improved due to the additional
source of energy dissipation represented by the dampers located at the base of the walls The
feasibility of the suggested approach is verified by evaluating the results of pushover analysis
carried out on a building designed following the proposed approach. It is useful to note that similar
approaches have been proposed in past years also by other authors, such as that provided by Pinelli
et al., 1995 [5]. In particular, inthis study the author has proposed the application of an engineered
connection able to dissipate the seismic input energy working on the relative movement between
cladding panels and internal framing. Other studies on the behaviour of pre-cast concrete dry
connections have been carried out in [6,7].

2. The proposed dual system


As aforementioned, with the proposed approach, it is suggested to substitute the existing connectors
of the cladding panels with new ones able to realize a dual system, composed by external walls and
internal cantilever columns, working in parallel. In order to realize such a dual system, it is
suggested to connect the cladding panels to the perimeter beams and to the foundations by means of
two connector typologies located at the base and at the top of the walls. In particular, it is proposed
to connect the top of the panels to the internal structure by means of a connection able to restrain
the out-of-plane direction and the in-plane horizontal translation and to leave free the vertical inplane direction in order to allow the rocking motion of the cladding walls. In addition, it is
suggested to provide at the tips of the base of the walls a couple of hysteretic dampers able to
absorb shear and axial forces (Fig.2). These hysteretic dampers have to be designed to counteract
the actions transferred by the connections located at the top of the walls and to dissipate the seismic

energy by means of the hysteresis activated by the alternate rocking motion of the cladding panels
arising during a seismic event (Fig.3). In line with the classical theories for the seismic retrofit of
existing buildings with energy dissipating systems or, more in general, following the philosophy of
concentrating the plasticization only in elements easy to replace after the seismic event, the
proposed hybrid system is designed with stiff cladding panels and flexible columns. In this way,
under significant seismic events the dampers located at the base of the external walls provide
dissipation supply at low displacements, protecting the columns from damages (Fig.2).
COLUMNS

CLADDING PANELS

Vcolumns

Vpanels

V
DUAL SYSTEM

CLADDING PANELS

V/2

V
M

V/2

COLUMNS

Figure 2. Idealization of the dual system composed by columns and cladding panels

It is useful to note that, in this way, provided that the cladding panels are designed to be sufficiently
stiff with respect to the internal columns, almost all the seismic action is entrusted to the external
walls, while the internal columns only have to carry the vertical loads and to follow the lateral
displacements remaining essentially in elastic range. In the next paragraphs, the structural details of
the proposed system are described and, afterwards, an example of design of a new building
equipped with the proposed seismic dampers is provided. The approach is then validated by
carrying out pushover analysis.

Figure 3. Rocking motion of the panels under seismic actions. Preliminary model realized in ABAQUS

2.1.1 Hysteretic Damper


The hysteretic damper applied in this paper to cladding panels of precast concrete buildings, namely
XL-Stub, has been developed by the authors in another research dealing with the seismic behaviour
of wooden structures realized with cross laminated timber panels.

Figure 4. Bending moment diagram arising on the tapered flange and deformed shape under cyclic tests

It is realized by modifying the shape of the flange plate of a steel angle following the same basic
principle of the ADAS devices (Added Stiffness And Damping). In particular, with the proposed
angle it is made provision for tapering the flange plate in the zone in between the stem and the bolt
according to the diagram of the bending moment arising under tension loads (Fig.4). In fact, it is
intuitive to understand that if the plate is cut, providing a width which varies accordingly with the
diagram of the bending moment, it is ideally possible to obtain the contemporary plasticization of
all plate sections leading to a high dissipative capacity due to the deformation demand distributed
along the whole plate. Starting from the diagram of the bending moment arising in a plate, under the
assumption of a strong bolt and a weak plate, it is easy to verify that the shape which provides the
simultaneous plasticization of all plate sections is an ideal X-shape (Fig. 4). In the past experimental
activity, the XL-stub has already been tested under monotonic and cyclic loading conditions in
order to evaluate its stiffness, resistance and hysteretic behaviour.
MONOTONIC TEST
ULTIMATE RESISTANCE = 280 kN

150
ULTIMATE DISPLACEMENT= 53 mm

250

150

100

100
50

F [kN]

200

F[kN]

A04-CV

200

300

0
-50

-100
-150

DESIGN PLASTIC RESISTANCE = 52 kN


50

-200
0
0

10

20

30

d [mm]

40

50

60

-250
0

10

15

20

[mm]

25

30

35

40

Figure 5. Monotonic and cyclic behaviour of the XL-Stub

Some of the experimental results are reported in Fig.5. In the same figure it is reported also the
value of the plastic resistance of the tested XL-Stub and the ultimate displacement to be used in
design. The plastic resistance has been obtained according to the procedure proposed by EN 19931-8, i.e. in correspondence of the intersection of the experimental curve with a line of slope equal to
one third of the initial stiffness.
2.1.2 Top Connections

In order to allow the rocking motion of the walls, the top connections fastening the cladding panels
to the perimeter beams of the internal framing have to be designed in order to restrain the out-ofplane and the in-plane horizontal direction leaving free the vertical translation. The concept of the
proposed top connections is very simple. They are composed by two welded plates forming a Tstub. One of the plates is fastened to the upper face of the perimeter beam, the other one is bolted to
the internal face of the cladding panel. In order to allow the vertical movement, slots are made on

the flange plate of the T-stub (Fig.6).

Figure 6. Vertical movement of the of the top connection under seismic actions. Preliminary model

Within the framework of the capacity design, in order to completely exploit the deformation
capacity of the plastic zones, it is necessary to design the top connections for a shear value
corresponding to arisement of the ultimate resistance in the hysteretic dampers. Considering a panel
of width B and height h, with self-weight equal to W and neglecting the resistance provided by the
damper closest to the center of compression, this action can be evaluated by means of a simple
rotational equilibrium equation as:
=

(1)

where Tu is the ultimate resistance of the XL-Stub farthest from the center of compression and z is
the lever arm.

3. Case Study

Section A-A

Lateral view

Section B-B

Front view

Figure 7. Plan view, facades and sections of the analysed building

In order to evaluate the seismic performance of the proposed system a case study has been analysed.
The structure considered in this paper is a symmetrical classical industrial single-storey building
with plan dimensions equal to 41.5 m x 29 m, completely realized with precast concrete elements
assembled with dry connections (Fig.7). The internal structure is composed by 12 columns with

section to be determined according to the design criteria and height equal to 6.95 m. The roof cover
is simply supported by the columns and it is constituted by pre-stressed concrete beams and curved
concrete panels. The facades are realized with pre-cast concrete cladding panels of different width,
with height equal to 8 m and thickness equal to 20 cm. The longitudinal facades are covered with 15
panels of width equal to 2.77 m, while the transversal facades are cladded with 6 panels of width
equal to 2.5 and 2 panels of width equal to 1.49 m. Furthermore, in order to allow the access of
materials and machinery of big size, in the short directions there are two 5 m wide openings. The
loads applied on the structure are the following: dead load due to the roof elements Gk,roof=1.39
kN/m2, snow load on the roof Qk,snow=0.6 kN/m2, dead load due to the cladding panels in the
longitudinal direction Gk,panels,x=1508 kN, dead load due to the cladding panels in the transversal
direction Gk,panels,y=880 kN.
3.1.1 Preliminary design
The structural elements have been designed respecting the procedures provided by the Eurocodes
[8,9] and the Italian building code [10]. In order to clarify the procedure, in the following, the
preliminary design of the structural elements is reported.
1 - Design of the panels
The considered seismic elastic spectrum in terms of pseudo-acceleration is delivered in Fig.8. Due
to the high initial stiffness, it is assumed that the first period of vibration of the building falls in
between the periods TC and TB of the spectrum. In addition, hypothesizing from preliminary
analysis carried out in another work that the behaviour factor to be used in design for the proposed
system is equal to 5, the seismic action can be easily determined as:
Seismic mass: = [(1.39 + 0.3 0.6) 41.5 29 + 1508 + 880] = 4705
()
0.371
Seismic action: = = 4705 5 = 348

(2)

Assuming that the seismic action entrusted to the columns is negligible, it is possible to define the
minimum number of panels to be fixed to the foundation with the hysteretic dampers. In particular,
there are two contributions to be accounted for: the resistance to the rocking motion due to the selfweight of the panels and the resistance provided by the hysteretic dampers. From the free body

diagram reported in Fig.2 it is easy to understand that the first one can be computed as , = 2

and the second one as , = . Employing these equations it has been chosen to fix on
each facade six panels with a couple of dampers located at a distance of 0.2 m from the edge. As
reported in Fig.4 the plastic resistance of each XL-Stub is equal to 52 kN. The checks for the two
directions are reported in the following:
Direction-y:
2.5
1.49
2.3
, = 12 61 26.95 + 4 36.5 26.95 = 147 ; , = 12 52 6.95 = 206
, = 147 + 206 = 353
(3)
Direction-x:
2.77
2.57
, = 30 50 26.95 = 299 ; , = 12 52 6.95 = 231
, = 299 + 232 = 531

2 - Design of the columns


In the proposed dual system, due to the high flexibility of the columns with respect to the cladding
walls, it can be realistically assumed that they have to carry only the vertical loads and that, under
horizontal actions, they simply follows the lateral movement of the panels remaining in elastic
range. Following this philosophy, their cross-section can be designed under simple compression

with an axial force corresponding to the fundamental load combination, while the percentage of
longitudinal reinforcement can be designed in order to provide the first yielding of the material
composing the column only after the arisement of the ultimate elongation of the dampers. In this
way, under ultimate loads, the column is prevented from any damage. Therefore, according to this
criteria the columns have been designed in order to respect the following two conditions:
= > ,
(4)

, ,

+ 0,0013 (1 + 1,5 ) + 0,13


>
=
3

where , is the chord rotation at yielding, under the assumption of stress block behaviour of
the concrete is equal to 0.80, is the non-dimensional neutral axis expressed as ratio between the
neutral axis and the height of the column, is the yield curvature of the column equal to the ratio
between the yield strain of the materials composing the column and the neutral axis, Lv is the
column shear length (in the considered case it is equal to the column height), fy and fc are the
resistances of steel and concrete respectively and db is the average diameter of the longitudinal
rebars. The proposed design criteria for the columns has led to a cross-section of 45x45 cm
longitudinally reinforced with 1624.
, =

3.1.2 Results of Pushover Analysis


Design Spectra

0.4
0.4
0.3

Spa [m/s2]

0.3
0.2
0.2
0.1
0.1

TB

0.0
0.0

TC
0.5

1.0

1.5

2.0

2.5

3.0

3.5

4.0

4.5

T [s]

Figure 8. Structural model and force-displacement behaviour of the damper

The performance of the proposed system under seismic events has been verified by means of the
software SAP 2000. In particular, the structural model has been developed in order to account for
the plasticity arising in the elements with a mixed lumped and spread plasticity approach. In fact,
the columns are modelled with fiber elements able to simulate the plasticity arising in concrete and
rebars, while the hysteretic dampers are defined as non-linear links whose force-elongation law is
characterized according to the experimental results. Furthermore, in order to model the
deformability of the panels and their inelastic behaviour they have been modelled with non-linear
shell elements. On such a model, several pushover analysis have been developed. A first analysis,
carried out both in x and y direction, without panels in order to obtain the lateral force-displacement
contribution due to the columns only. A second one introducing a hinge at the base of the columns
in order to obtain only the contribution due to the panels.
A third one where both columns and cladding panels have been considered. The results obtained in these
analysis are reported in Fig.9. From such a figure it is possible to verify that the results of the pushover
analysis, both in x and y direction, confirm the behaviour expected from the design criteria. In fact, the
behaviour of the whole structure is practically given by the sum of the contribution provided by
columns and panels and, in addition, as provided in the design, the columns are much more flexible than
the panels and enter in plastic range only after the failure of the hysteretic dampers. The checks of the
structure according to the EN1998 are not reported here for the sake of simplicity but, as it is easy to

verify, they are satisfied in both cases. Furthermore, the results of the pushover analysis have been used
to verify the value of the q-factor assumed in design. In particular, as it is well known, under the
hypothesis of structure characterized by a natural vibration period lower than Tc (low-period range), it
can be expressed as the product of two terms: one related to the over-strength of the structural system
and another one due to the ductility supply, i.e.:

= = (2 1)0.5

(6)

where Vu is the ultimate resistance of the equivalent bi-linear system and V1 is the resistance leading to
the first yielding of the structure. In the considered cases, expression (6) lead to values of the behaviour
factor much higher than those adopted in design, i.e. 15 for the x-direction and 13 for the y-direction.
Even though this is only a preliminary evaluation, it already points out the very high over-strength and
ductility supply exhibited by the proposed system after yielding.
PUSHOVER -X

Fh (KN)

Fh (KN)
1900

V1,COLUMN

2000

PUSHOVER -Y

V1,COLUMN
Vu,PANEL

y,COLUMN

Vu,PANEL

1500

1400

900

1000

V1,PANEL

V1,pannello
400

u,PANEL

500

0
0.000000

0.000000
-100

y,pannello

0.050000
DUAL SYSTEM

0.100000
COLUMNS

CLADDING PANELS

0.150000

tot(m)

y,pannello

0.050000

Serie1

0.100000

pushover pannelli

pushover pannelli

0.150000

u,pannello y,pilastro

tot(m)

Figure 9. Results of the pushover analysis reporting the behaviour of cladding panels, columns and of the dual system

3.1.3 Conclusions
In this paper, an innovative approach for seismic retrofit or for design of new pre-cast concrete
structures has been presented. The proposed system, as an alternative to the classical approach,
provides to connect rigidly the cladding walls to the internal columns and to introduce at the base of
the panels metallic hysteretic dampers in order to obtain a dual system. The design philosophy of
the proposed approach has been validated by developing a case study of a single-storey industrial
building in SAP 2000. The results of the pushover analysis have pointed out that the dual system
can be easily modelled as the assemblage in parallel of columns and cladding panels. Following the
proposed design criterion it has been pointed out that, if properly designed, the system is able to
develop a significant over-strength and ductility after first yielding protecting, in the same time, the
internal columns from any plasticization. This is a very important aspect especially for the repair of
the building after a seismic event as far as with the proposed approach the only elements to be
substituted are the hysteretic dampers located at the base of the walls. The results obtained so far
appear very promising, even though more analysis are needed to completely validate the approach.
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[2]
[3]

RELUIS, Linee di Indirizzo per Interventi locali e globali su edifici industriali monopiano
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[4]

[5]

[6]
[7]

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