Real-Time Hybrid Simulation of a Nonductile Reinforced Concrete Frame

Abstract

This paper reports about a real-time hybrid simulation (RTHS) of a nonductile reinforced concrete frame that had previously been tested on a shake table (ST) at the University of California, Berkeley. This three-story, three-bay frame is numerically modeled with flexibility-based/layered nonlinear elements and over 400 degrees of freedom (DOFs), while one of the nonductile base columns is physically tested in the laboratory. RTHS is enabled through a new code developed by the authors, and these simulation results are compared with those obtained from the ST test. The comparison between ST tests and RTHS is encouraging, though still not acceptable (within 10%). Details of the simulation are provided, and preliminary results indicate that RTHS may be indeed provide the natural path for a gradual substitution of physical (and expensive) testing by numerical simulation. This contribution offers a small step in that direction.