Experimental Investigation on Inelastic Cyclic Behaviour of Bracing Member with Wide-flange Section

Braced frames have been frequently employed as the lateral force resisting system of low- to mid-rise buildings. However, available test results are relatively limited to establish analysis models of braces with wide-flange that are required to capture their inelastic cyclic response. To address this, a full scale quasi-static test of a brace with wide-flange section was carried out to investigate the important structural characteristics which significantly influence its inelastic cyclic behaviour. This paper focuses on the buckling strength, tensile yield strength and local buckling of the test specimen and compares them with those predicted using an existing physical theory model. The physical model well predicts the hysteretic curve within tensile regions. However, the analytical compressive resistance of the specimen after buckling is overestimated compared to that obtained from the test results.