Quasi‐static test and strut‐and‐tie modeling of precast concrete shear walls with unconnected vertically distributed reinforcements

To solve the fabrication problems of traditional precast shear walls caused by too many connections joints, a new type of precast shear wall with unconnected vertically distributed reinforcements and concealed bracings is developed in this paper. Four full‐scale shear walls, including one cast‐in‐place specimen and three precast specimens, were tested under low‐cycle lateral loading conditions to evaluate the seismic performance of the new type of precast shear wall. The test results showed that the loading capacity and energy dissipation of the new type of precast shear wall were comparable to those of the cast‐in‐place specimen; however, the failure mode was similar to the damage mechanism of an infilled wall frame, not the traditional bending‐shear mode of shear walls. Then, a new strut‐and‐tie model considering dowel action was proposed for this new type of precast shear wall. Finally, a parametric study was conducted by finite element analysis to determine a reasonable value of the effective strength coefficient for the strut‐and‐tie model. Good agreement was achieved between the test and model results.