Seismic performance assessment of code-conforming precast reinforced concrete frames in China

Precast reinforced concrete (RC) frames have been rapidly developed in structural engineering due to their various advantages, such as high efficiency and low environmental pollution. However, the construction quality of precast RC frames is difficult to guarantee, and the interface of new and old concrete and the bond-slip effects of additional steel bars may lead to different performance levels of precast RC frames. Therefore, it is necessary and important to investigate and assess the seismic performance of precast RC frames that adopt the conformation of Chinese code. In this paper, a numerical simulation method for precast RC frames is developed based on OpenSEES software, in which the Joint2D element is used to simulate the beam-to column connections to consider the shear and bond-slip effects. Two prototype structures of precast RC frames are designed, and the nonlinear time history analysis is performed to explore the seismic performance of the precast RC frames according to the Chinese code. Meanwhile, the incremental dynamic analysis and fragility analysis are conducted to study the differences in seismic performance and collapse resistance between precast RC frames and cast-in-situ RC frames.