09.08: Structural behaviour of steel seismic links under strong cyclic loading

The work presented in this paper is part of an extensive European research project on horizontal seismic links subjected to strong full‐reversing cyclic loading. Both experimental testing and numerical simulations were conducted. The link specimens were subjected to combined shear and bending, representing the actual conditions acting on a seismic link during severe earthquake action. Large‐scale tests were performed under constant and increasing amplitude schemes, and parameters studied included steel material grade, length and cross‐section type of the link. The experimental setup employed consisted of a special two‐part steel loading frame that imposed on the steel link specimen a combined bending and shear type deformation. The experiments are supported by finite element model analysis. Three dimensional models have been employed for the simulation of the tests, and the numerical results agree well with the experimental results.