Nonlinear analysis of planar, H-shaped and U-shaped thin reinforced concrete shear walls

This paper presents and discusses the results of nonlinear finite element analysis (NL-FEA) of thin reinforced concrete shear walls. For this, an in-home developed shell structures NL-FEA program called CANECA was used. The materials modeling use the basis of the Modified Compression Field Theory and the geometric nonlinearity is evaluated using a Total Lagrangian Formulation. The influence of geometric nonlinearity and cyclic loading condition on an H-shaped shear wall behavior is discussed. From the obtained results, a higher influence of the cyclic loading condition is observed. Other two shear walls (simple planar and U-shaped) are also analyzed. Their geometry and reinforcement are modified in order to observe the influence of these parameters on the structural behavior, including the case of slender shear walls. The performed analysis on the two shear walls showed good agreement with the numerical response obtained in the NL-FEA program VECTOR4. The obtained numerical ultimate loads were much higher than the original structure design load and the slenderness ratio was insufficient to characterize the ultimate structural behavior. The results from this study can contribute for a better understanding on the structural behavior of thin reinforced concrete shear walls, and serve as guidance for future studies and normative developments.