Abstract:
Braces equipped with Asymmetrical Friction Connection (AFC) details, assembled with Bisalloy 500 shims and placed at one end of the braces, have been tested quasi-statically. It is shown that braces equipped with AFC details are characterized by a repeatable hysteretic behaviour with strength degradations up to 10%. This degradation corresponds to the case where braces are subjected up to 40 cycles across the effective stroke of the connection with no components replaced or bolts re-tensioning. Also, outof- plane brace deformation slightly causes a change in strength with axial displacement. Effective friction coefficients ranging between 0.16 and 0.20 were obtained for AFC braces.