Performance Evaluation of Friction Damped Braced Steel Frames under Simulated Earthquake Loads

Abstract

This paper presents the results obtained from tests of a new friction damping system, which has been proposed in order to improve the response of steel Moment Resisting Frames (MRF) and Braced Moment Resisting Frames (BMRF) during severe earthquakes. The system consists of a mechanism containing brake lining pads introduced at the intersection of frame cross-braces. Seismic tests of a three storey Friction Damped Braced Frame (FDBF) model were performed on an earthquake simulator table. The experimental results are compared with the findings of an inelastic time-history dynamic analysis. The results clearly indicate the superior performance of the FDBF compared to conventional building systems.