BEHAVIOR AND SIMPLIFIED MODELING OF MECHANICAL REINFORCING BAR SPLICES

Bridge seismic design codes do not allow mechanical reinforcing bar splices in regions expected to undergo significant inelastic deformations during earthquakes, thus severely limiting precast and innovative bridge column construction that uses such splices. The uniaxial behavior of two commercially available mechanical splices under different loading conditions was investigated experimentally in this study with emphasis on deformation response. Tests were performed with static, dynamic, and cyclic loading. The performance of the splices was satisfactory under all loading conditions in that bar fracture occurred outside the splice. Furthermore, the results revealed the effect of the relatively high stiffness of mechanical couplers. The responses of individual splices were used to interpret data from a series of cyclic tests on half-scale bridge columns employing mechanical splices in plastic hinge zones. Lastly, a simple method was proposed and validated for modeling these devices in reinforced concrete members.