DUCTILE KNEE BRACED FRAMES WITH SHEAR YIELDING KNEE FOR SEISMIC RESISTANT STRUCTURES

A knee braced frame with shear yielding knee is being investigated for possible applications in earthquake resistant design. The experimenta l results reveal that when the knee is designed with web stiffener to prevent tearing of the web, it can dissipate a large amount of energy during a severe earthquake. The displacement ductility obtained is hig her than that of a knee braced frame with a moment yielding knee. The experimental results are compared with the results obtained from an an alytical model using a dynamic analysis software, DRAIN-2D and are fou nd to be in good agreement.