An Evaluation of Seismic Design Guidelines Proposed for Precast Jointed Wall Systems

Following the satisfactory response of the unbonded post-tensioned precast concrete jointed wall system tested for seismic performance as part of the PREcast Seismic Structural Systems (PRESSS) test building, a set of design guidelines was published. The primary objective of the research presented in this report is to evaluate the adequacy of the design guidelines and make appropriate recommendations so that the guidelines can be adopted for design of jointed precast walls in seismic regions. The test data to date on such systems are those collected during the wall direction testing of the PRESSS test building. Hence, this data set has been employed in the validation process. Furthermore, in order to validate the design guidelines over a range of lateral displacements, an analytical procedure was first developed by reversing the suggested guidelines. Additionally, because of the shortcomings associated with the use of the equivalent stress block concept in design, an alternative analysis method was also considered, which was based on the monolithic beam analogy (MBA) originally developed for jointed frame systems. The analytical results from monotonic loading were compared to experimental response of the jointed wall established from the PRESSS test data. It was found that the analysis method based on the PRESSS guidelines underestimated the lateral load resistance of the jointed wall in the PRESSS test building by up to 22% at large lateral displacements and overestimated by greater percentages at small displacements. When