Performance of Enhanced Steel Beam-Column Welded Connections for Seismic Resistance

This paper presents and discusses the development of a numerical model which investigates the enhancement of overall stiffness and stress distribution in welded connections under cyclic loading. The structure under investigation, described in four fully welded T-joint (BCC5) specimens. The four specimens were modeled under different displacement loading using a finite element analysis program Solidworks and Ansys software in conjunction with test data obtained from the University of Lisbon, which was validated with the test results by matching the hysteresis loops, maximum high strain, and maximum stress at the crack location steel joint specimens. The comparison between the analysis and test results showed good agreement and also showed that the maximum strain in the enhanced model is less than the maximum strain on the base model, and the location of maximum strain is moved to the gusset plate rather than the weld zone, therefore the gusset plate makes the joint in the enhanced model more ductile than the joint in the base model. Life cycles to failure for the enhanced model are more than life cycles to failure in the base model. It is therefore found that this has useful applications in the steel construction industry.