Influence of openings on horizontal load-carrying capacity of timber-frame wall elements with fibre-plaster sheathing boards

The paper presents an experimental analysis of timber - framed wall panels with openings, coated with single fibre-plaster boards fastened to a timber frame. The present study is a continuation of the research work realized in the last years in reinforcing of the prefabricated timber-frame wall panels without any openings. The aim of the study presented here was to provide the information about the influence of the openings on the wall's racking load-carrying capacity as well as on the horizontal stiffness of the timber-frame wall panels. The tests were carried out on three groups of full-scale wall panels with different areas of openings. The measured results were compared to the results of wall panels without openings. Subsequently, the strength/stiffness ratios, defined as the ratios of strength/stiffness of wall panels with openings to those of no-opening wall panels were calculated. Finally, the obtained results were compared to three analytical procedures from the literature, namely the equations proposed by Yasumura and Sugiyama, by the Method B from Eurocode 5 and by the equations presented in Supek, Duke and Zarnic. The presented experimental study also emphasizes the conclusion that the timber-frame wall panels containing an opening may be accounted to contribute to the overall horizontal load-carrying capacity, especially when a considerable part of the structure is made of such panels. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.