Reinforced Concrete Shear Walls

Reinforced concrete shear walls have long been recognized as suitable structural systems providing both lateral resistance and drift control in rc buildings.

Reinforced concrete shear walls.

Reinforced concrete shear wall analysis and design. Reinforced concrete walls are often used as elements for ensuring the lateral strength and stability of a structure. The changes are a result of the unsatisfactory performance of many shear walls in the chile earthquake of 2010 and the christchurch new zealand earthquake of 2011. Shear wall is a structural member in a reinforced concrete framed structure to resist lateral forces such as wind forces.

The design and detailing requirements for special reinforced concrete shear walls have undergone significant changes from aci 318 11 to aci 318 14. Wall thickness varies from 40 mm. Reinforced concrete shear wall analysis and design. There are three types of action a reinforced concrete wall can be subjected to.

Shear wall section and assumed reinforcement is investigated after analysis to verify suitability for the applied loads. Shear walls are the main vertical structural elements with a dual role of resisting both the gravity and lateral loads. Their benefits such as high load carrying capacity and high energy dissipation make them an attractive alternative in the construction of high rise buildings particularly in areas of seismic activity. A structural reinforced concrete shear wall in a 5 story building provides lateral and gravity load resistance for the applied load as shown in the figure below.

During an earthquake a large amount of energy is released. Reinforced concrete rc shear walls are commonly used in high rise buildings to resist lateral loads such as winds and earthquakes. Shear walls are generally used in high rise buildings subject to lateral wind and seismic forces. Reinforced concrete wall is designed as a compression member.

The action to which walls are most vulnerable is bending and this guidance note principally addresses this form of stress. Reinforced concrete wall is classified as. Plain concrete wall when reinforcement 0 4. The lateral and gravity load resisting system consists of reinforced concrete walls and reinforced concrete slabs.

Shear wall section and assumed reinforcement is investigated after analysis to verify suitability for the applied loads. However these older shear walls were typically designed for combined actions of gravity loads and wind loading.