Numerical Modeling of Squat Reinforced Concrete Shear Walls with High-Strength Materials

This paper presents a numerical study that simulates the behavior of squat reinforced concrete (RC) shear walls with high-strength reinforcing steel and high-strength concrete. The finite element models are critically evaluated based on previous experiments of four deep-beam specimens and four squat shear-wall specimens with varied material strengths, base moment-to-shear ratios, and section shapes (rectangular and flanged). Monotonic lateral load analyses provided reasonable predictions of the peak lateral strength for squat walls tested under reversed-cyclic loading. However, reversed-cyclic models were necessary for more accurate predictions of the cyclic lateral load versus drift behavior, including cracking, stiffness degradation, lateral load-resistance mechanism, peak strength and corresponding drift, and energy dissipation. Importantly, the model predictions for specimens using high-strength materials were as good as or better than those using normal-strength materials with the same base moment-to-shear ratio. Thus, the use of higher-strength materials did not negatively impact the ability of the models to predict wall behavior.