Structural behavior and failure probability of thin‐walled cold‐formed steel buildings affected by land subsidence

Abstract Land subsidence due to groundwater withdrawal is a pressing issue worldwide, particularly in the shallow regions of Mexico, causing differential settlements in structures such as dwellings and reinforced concrete or masonry buildings. These materials often perform inadequately beyond a certain angular distortion. This study presents experimental and numerical investigations on a full‐scale thin‐walled cold‐formed steel building subjected to angular distortions simulating differential ground settlements. The experimental phase involved designing a laboratory hydro‐mechanical device to reproduce differential settlements and testing a full‐scale one‐story building. The numerical phase consisted of modeling the building with nonlinear structural analysis software, incorporating key geometrical and mechanical properties (e.g., rotational stiffness and moment–rotation curves based on the direct strength method). A non‐linear static pull‐down analysis produced several angular distortions, demonstrating that the building exhibits excellent ductility, sustaining large distortions with minimal damage. These results suggest that cold‐formed steel structures are a promising alternative for enhancing structural safety in areas affected by land subsidence.