Analysis of Coupled Wall/Frame Structures by Frame Method With Shear Deformation Allowed.

The use of wide column frame analogy to analyse coupled wall/frame structures has been popular for many years. However, since shear deformation of the walls has not been appropriately considered, the existing frame methods are not applicable to those cases where shear deformation is significant: e.g. core walls subjected to torsion. This problem is studied and it is found that the shear deformation of the walls should be allowed for in the rigid arms rather than in the column elements which model the wall units. Based on this finding, the frame method is extended to analyse all kinds of coupled wall/frame structures, including partially or completely closed core walls subjected to torsion, and walls subjected to concentrated vertical loads. A new solid wall element incorporating rigid arms that are deformable in shear, with rotational degrees of freedom and with shear deformation taken into account, is developed. The accuracy and versatility of the proposed methods are demonstrated by comparing them with other theoretical and experimental results.