Abstract

Reinforced concrete shear walls (RCSWs) are essential structural components for dissipating seismic energy in buildings. This study investigates the energy dissipation mechanisms of RCSWs under seismic loading by analyzing the effects of wall height-to-width ratio, concrete compressive strength, and reinforcement ratio. Twenty-four RCSW models with varying parameters were analyzed using the finite element method (FEM) in CSI-SAP2000. The models were evaluated based on energy dissipation, displacement, and drift responses. Results show that increasing wall width like reducing the height-to-width ratio enhanced energy dissipation by up to 66%, while also increasing stiffness and reducing displacement. When the compressive strength was increased from 25 MPa to 35 MPa, energy dissipation improved by 33.27%, 54.55%, and 66%, attributed to the corresponding increase in the modulus of elasticity. In contrast, higher reinforcement ratios, while improving structural ductility, led to a reduction in energy dissipation ranging from 1.82% to 19.79%. This study provides quantitative correlations between key design parameters and seismic performance metrics, offering practical guidelines for optimizing RCSW designs in earthquake-prone regions.

Keywords

Energy dissipation, Static/dynamic analysis, Reinforced concrete, Seismic loading, Finite element method, CSI-SAP2000.

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