Experimental Investigation of Self-Centering Steel Plate Shear Walls

A series of subassembly tests were conducted to investigate the behavior of the self-centering steel plate shear wall (SC-SPSW) system under cyclic loading. The SC-SPSW system utilizes thin steel web plates to provide energy dissipation and the primary strength and stiffness of the system, whereas posttensioned (PT) beam-to-column connections provide recentering capabilities. In this new system, the web plate is intended to yield under cyclic loading, whereas the boundary elements and PT connection elements remain undamaged. The web plate can then be replaced relatively easily following significant inelastic cycles. This experimental program studies the effects of various design parameters on the system and connection response and compares the response with approximate analytical formulas. The experimental results show that the SC-SPSW system has high ductility, high initial stiffness, recentering capabilities, an overall system response as anticipated, and more energy dissipation than expected. DOI: 10.1061/(ASCE)ST.1943-541X.0000531. (C) 2012 American Society of Civil Engineers.