Flexible joints for seismic-resilient masonry-infilled RC frames: Shaking table test results

Masonry infills are among the most vulnerable components of reinforced concrete (RC) building frames, often sustaining significant damage even under low to moderate seismic intensities. Flexible joints are a very promising technique to protect these infills from damage, which could also offer an opportunity to enhance the global performance of infilled frames. To validate their effectiveness, it is essential to conduct full-scale shaking table testing on structural prototypes under realistic loading conditions. Additionally, it is important to evaluate whether these joints offer sufficient energy dissipation capabilities to support a resilient design of infilled frames. The ERIES-FLEJOI project has addressed these research needs by examining two innovative flexible joint systems: one designed to increase the infills' compliance, and another intended to decouple the infills from the frame. These systems have been implemented in two identical RC frame prototypes with masonry infills, which have been successfully tested at the Dynamic Testing Laboratory of IZIIS in Skopje, North Macedonia. This paper describes the constructed prototypes and the preliminary results from the shaking table tests, highlighting differences in the performance achieved with the two joint systems.