Recent Collaborative Research Activities Between Europe and China on the Seismic Behaviour of Precast Structures

With the support from both European Commission and Chinese Government, a series of collaborative research activities on the seismic behaviour of precast reinforced concrete structures have been carried out between the European Laboratory for Structural Assessment (ELSA), Joint Research Centre, European Commission, and the State Key Laboratory for Disaster Reduction in Civil Engineering (SKLDRCE), Tongji University, Shanghai, P.R. China. The seismic behaviour of this worldwide used structural system is discussed, based on the outcomes of the experimental activity. It is concluded that well-conceived and designed precast reinforced concrete structures have almost the same seismic capacities as the cast-in-situ reinforced concrete structures. The motivations for further ongoing activities are discussed.