Alternative Seismic Design for Six Storey Concentrically Braced Frames

Abstract The present paper intends to illustrate the main advantages and disadvantages of four alternative seismic deign procedures for concentrically braced frames. In the alternative seismic design procedures additional potentially plastic zones, with reduced beam cross‐sections (resembling the „dog‐bone“ detail), were provided near all girder ends, in order to ensure a larger strength of the columns compared to the one of the frame girders, when subjected to strong seismic actions. Two six‐storey concentrically braced frames, each having two spans of 6.0m and a storey height of 3.5m, were designed in turn according to the provisions of the relevant European and Romanian seismic design codes and four alternative seismic design procedures. The behaviour during the dynamic nonlinear analyses of all configurations of the concentrically braced frames, which resulted from the considered design procedures, was compared.