A numerical approach to define the rotational stiffness of a prefabricated connection and experimental study

A numerical approach is proposed to define the elastic rotational stiffness of a typical joint on the top beam of a prefabricated reinforced concrete gable frame structure. The 12 degrees of freedom triangular plane stress finite element is used to examine the connection region. Using this joint rotational stiffness value, realistic results are obtained in the frame analysis. The experimental verification is performed by means of the photoelastic method. Following the proposed method, an effective joint length with reduced moment of inertia is defined and using this concept the frame solution is simply achieved, including the existence of joint.