Nonlinear analysis of interior and exterior beam-column connections under reversed cyclic loading

This paper presents a case study into the application of nonlinear finite element for the analysis of interior and exterior beam-column joints under reversed cyclic loading. Three beam-column joints, with different reinforcement configurations and test conditions, were considered to assess the accuracy of the currently available constitutive models in predicting the full hysteretic response of beam-column joints under reversed cyclic loading. To this end, the three beam-column joints were modelled in ATENA-GiD which implements nonlinear constitutive models for steel and concrete, the latter of which are formulated within the context of crack-band and crush-band approaches. In this paper, the default constitutive models in the program were employed to evaluate the accuracy of the existing modelling and analysis procedures. From the series of results presented, it is shown that the existing constitutive models are capable of predicting various aspects of the joint behaviour under reversed cyclic loading with good accuracy. This includes the peak load capacity, degrees of pinching and strength degradation, strength and stiffness degradation, unloading and reloading stiffnesses, crack patterns and failure modes.