Continuum Model for Analysis of Multiply Connected Perforated Cores

Abstract

As is known, when a shear core presents rows of regular openings along the height, the stiffness properties of the connecting beams can be smeared over the height by making use of concepts of statics or energy equivalence. Hence, by virtue of the constraining action of the floor slabs, the shear core can be seen as a nonhomogeneous thin‐walled beam, with open or closed (possibly multicell) cross section, constituted by an assemblage of interconnected prismatic curtains having different elastic properties. This paper presents a one‐dimensional model for the flexural‐torsional analysis of such “nonhomogeneous” thin‐walled beam with any given cross section, allowing for shear deformations due to nonuniform bending and torsion. The axial displacement field is represented by separating the cross‐sectional and axial variables, and the governing equations for the coupled flexural‐torsional behavior are given. Some examples are solved of beams with one or two planes of symmetry, showing excellent agreement with experimental and finite‐element method (FEM) results.