Numerical Assessment of CFS-SWP with Different Door Opening Positions

A prevalent method of countering lateral forces in seismic regions for structures made of Cold Formed Steel (CFS) involves employing Shear Walls Panels (SWP) covered with steel sheets. The overall reaction and various failure modes during lateral loading have become apparent, continuing to capture the interest of designers and researchers. Typically, door openings are ever-present in the front and rear elevations where SWPs find their optimal position to ensure lateral stability in CFS structures. These architectural design features translate into reduced areas for lateral load resistance throughout the structure. Through numerical simulations, this paper discusses the effect of the door opening, with different positions in the SWP, on the shear strength performance of CFS-SWP. A Finite Element (FE) modelling is developed using the ABAQUS software, taking into account material and geometrical nonlinearities, as well as assembled sheathing-to-framing connections. In order to validate the FE modelling with available experimental data, comprehensive static nonlinear analyses are conducted on CFS-SWP under monotonic load. A good agreement is achieved, namely: nonlinear strength-displacement response, ultimate shear strength, and failure modes. The effect of the door positions is assessed, in which, the opening position is found to have a significant impact on the CFS-SWP performance. The results reveal that the position of the door opening between the central and the edge of the SWP produces better performance than the other positions. However, the position of the door at the edge of the SWP induces additional failure modes in the vicinity of the chord studs.