Experimental study on seismic performance of Pingshenke Dou-Gong bracket under the overhanging and width loading direction

This paper investigates the seismic behavior of Pingshenke Dou-Gong bracket under the overhanging and width direction. Two full-scaled Dou-Gong brackets of Yihe Hall are tested by the pseudo-static test. The effects of loading direction on the failure patterns, hysteretic characteristics, stiffness and strength degradation, energy dissipation, and deformation capacity of the whole model under the overhanging and width loading direction are studied. Moreover, the rotation and shear displacement of Dou-Gong bracket components are discussed. The results indicated that when Dou-Gong bracket is loaded in the overhanging and width direction, the Da-Dou and Mantou-tenon are damaged. The Dou-Gong bracket loaded in the width direction has a higher bearing capacity, initial stiffness, and energy dissipation but a poor deformation capacity than Dou-Gong bracket under the overhanging direction. However, the stiffness and strength of both Dou-Gong brackets degenerate significantly. The rotation and shear displacement of the component increase with the displacement. The higher the upper components, the greater the rotation displacement, but the shear displacement is not obvious. When Dou-Gong bracket is loaded in the overhanging direction, the rotation and shear displacement are the main displacement composition in the positive and negative load, respectively. However, rotation displacement is always the main composition for the width direction Dou-Gong bracket in the positive and negative directions. • Dou-Gong in width direction has better seismic behavior than overhanging direction. • The higher the upper components, the greater the rotation displacement. • Overhanging direction Dou-Gong has rotation and shear displacement composition. • Rotation is the main displacement composition for width direction Dou-Gong.