Experimental Response of Buildings Designed with Metallic Structural Fuses. II

In a companion paper, an alternative design approach was proposed to concentrate damage on disposable and easy to repair structural elements (i.e., “structural fuses”), while the main structure is designed to remain elastic or with minor inelastic deformations. To verify and validate the developed design procedure, an experimental project was conducted on the shaking table at the University at Buffalo, which consists of a three-story frame designed with buckling-restrained braces (BRBs) working as metallic structural fuses. This experimental project also assesses the replaceability of BRBs designed as sacrificeable and easy-to-repair members. These BRBs are connected to the frame by removable and eccentric gusset plate, especially designed to prevent performance problems observed in other experimental research. Design and behavior of this type of connection is also investigated here. Another objective of this test is to examine the use of seismic isolation devices to protect nonstructural components from severe floor vibrations in buildings designed per the structural fuse concept. The seismic isolation device consists of a bearing with a spherical ball rolling in conical steel plates, also called a ball-in-cone system. This type of seismic isolator was installed on the top floor of the frame model, and its response in terms of acceleration and displacement is investigated as part of this investigation.