Evaluation of the Seismic Performance of Coupling Beams for Reinforced Concrete Shear Wall Building

The seismic performance of structural elements is a thoughtful consideration for ensuring building safety during earthquakes. Reinforced concrete (RC) shear walls in building construction typically have openings for doors, windows, and transportation access, requiring the inclusion of coupling beams to preserve structural integrity. These beams are crucial for increasing overall stiffness & strength of structural system by facilitating the transfer of lateral forces between structural components. This investigation study focuses on seismic behavior of coupling beams which is modelled & analyzed employing ANSYS, finite element analytical tool. Model incorporates pragmatic geometry, material properties, as well as boundary conditions to accurately emulate structural response to seismic excitation. After dynamic evaluations of the coupling beams, their reactions, deformation patterns, and stresses are thoroughly assessed. The results reveal that the diagonally reinforced beam exhibits a maximum deformation of 0.098mm, while maximum deformation of a conventional beam with a steel plate is 0.102mm indicating a 3.9% difference in maximum deformation. Furthermore, maximum shear stress of 7.644MPa is validated by a conventional beam with steel plate whereas diagonally reinforced beam exhibits a maximum shear stress of 8.511MPa, reflecting a 10.19% difference in maximum shear stress. These findings indicate that a conventional beam alongside steel plate endures reduced shear stress relative to laterally reinforced beam during seismic loading. This research advances our knowledge of coupling beam behavior and offers important new information for seismic design & estimation of reinforced concrete structures.