Diaphragm effectiveness of multistory precast parking structures with floor‐to‐floor mechanical connectors

Abstract

Multistory parking structures are a promising exploration avenue to address the acute need for parking spaces, and their floors are often joined with mechanical connectors to form a floor system. The properties of floor‐to‐floor connectors directly affect the seismic behavior of parking structures. Thus, the effectiveness of diaphragm action with several different typical floor‐to‐floor connectors was investigated and the natural frequencies and seismic performances of the parking structures were obtained. The results show that the mechanical characteristics of connectors in precast elements have a crucial influence on the diaphragm effectiveness of large‐span concrete structures with precast double‐tees under strong seismic action.

Analysis of Diaphragms Stiffness in Precast Construction supported on Reinforced Concrete Walls

“…Since the horizontal displacements at any point of the diaphragm are the same (since there are no considerable deformations). The proportion of restoring forces taken by each element depends exclusively on its stiffness [15]. The upper horizontal displacement of each column is the same.…”

“…The effective properties of diaphragms of many precast concrete structures suggest that they may be flexible, this neglect the original assumption that the floor systems serve as rigid diaphragms between the vertical components of the lateral force-resisting system [15]. For that reason, the behavior of the diaphragm should be evaluated.…”

Predicting capacity models and seismic fragility estimation for precast parking structures based on machine learning techniques

“…10,11 Therefore, mechanical connectors should be taken into account while determining the seismic fragility of precast structures. [12][13][14][15] Li and Zhou 16,17 systematically analyzed the diaphragm effectiveness and fragility of large-span precast parking structures, including more than 100 parking structures with different structural parameters. The results showed that the performance of the connectors between the elements of the parking structures will greatly affect the diaphragm effectiveness and seismic performance of the structures, and the seismic performance of the structures in different directions is significantly different.…”