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Abstract

One of the new passive seismic control devices implemented in the steel frame structure is to utilize the smart materials such as shape memory alloys (SMA) in the members. This paper presents the development of a numerical algorithm to assess and examine the behavior of the super-elastic property of SMA braces in steel structures subjected to cyclic loading. Super-elastic material model of SMA and plasticity model of steel are implemented into the general purpose finite element program. Material and geometrical nonlinearities including the large strain deformation of the finite element formulation are employed. A displacement loading control history is applied to the frame in accordance with the SAC loading protocol. The results obtained from the analyses are compared with the available test data from the state of the art buckling restrained steel braces; which indicates that SMA bracings increases the overall frame ductility. Finally in order to have the deeper understanding of the behavior of the SMA bracing system, a force control loading protocol is also applied on the framed structures.