Numerical Analysis on Shear Performance of Demountable Steel Ring Dowel Connections for Reusing Shear Walls

Rapid development of the building industry significantly increases construction and demolition waste (CDW) and greenhouse gas emissions. Demountable structures can reduce CDW and increase construction efficiency by reusing prefabricated structural elements. Conventional structures are non-reusable since the connections between structural elements are irreversible wet joints. This study proposes a demountable steel ring dowel (SRD) connection for transferring shear between shear wall panels. In this study, a finite element model is established using software ABAQUS and validated with experiment results. The effects of shape, material strength, and tube thickness on the shear strength of the steel ring dowel connection are investigated through numerical simulation. The results show that hexagon-shaped SRD connections have a higher initial stiffness than square- or round-shaped SRD connections. Hexagon-shaped SRD connections have much higher shear bearing capacity than round-shaped SRD connections. The shear bearing capacity of SRD connections increases with increasing tube thickness and the material strength. As the tube thickness rises from 3 mm to 10 mm, the initial stiffness of SRD connections first increases drastically and then remains almost constant. Infilled concrete increases the shear strength of SRD connections. However, the load-displacement curves of SRD connections with infilled concrete under shear first drop after reaching peak load due to the concrete detachment and cracking, and then remain almost constant.