Inelastic Analysis of Reinforced Concrete Frames

The imposed rotation method for the inelastic analysis of frames rests on the interpretation of the actual bending moment distribution as the superposition of linear elastic moment responses to loads and to unknown plastic rotations regarded as imposed strains. The method given herein is a generalized formulation, covering second-order geometric effects and moment-axial force interaction. Finite element models of frames and piecewise linear moment-rotation laws for critical sections are assumed. Recent algorithms for solving quadratic programming and linear complementarity problems are shown to be efficiently applicable to the analysis of multistory frames. The safety factor with respect to local failure because of “brittle” flexural behavior turns out to be attainable by a suitably modified linear programming procedure.