Performance-based seismic design of full and partial self-centering steel braced frames using modified lateral force distribution

Design base shear and lateral force distribution are two important aspects of the seismic design process. Different design methods have been proposed to obtain the design base shear of different types of structures. However, the study related to the lateral force distribution is limited, especially for self-centering (SC) structures. The primary objective of this research is to develop a performance-based seismic design (PBSD) procedure for steel braced frames considering the modified lateral force distribution. Six-story steel braced steel frames are designed to explore the influence of the energy dissipation factor on the lateral force distribution of the frames. Results of nonlinear time-history analyses indicated that the lateral force acting on the roof increases with the decrease in energy dissipation factor. Following the parametric analyses of single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) systems, the energy factor design spectra are established and the corresponding PBSD procedure for the steel braced frames is proposed. Finally, the four six-story braced steel frames are redesigned using the PBSD procedure with the modified lateral force distribution to illustrate the efficiency of the proposed design method. Analyses results indicate that the steel braced frames designed by the proposed design can satisfy the expected inter-story drift limit with a reasonably uniform distribution of peak inter-story drifts. Furthermore, the ‘partial’ SC system appears to be a desirable option that effectively controls the residual displacement and peak acceleration responses at the same time, and could achieve a manageable cost control compared to the full SC systems. • The optimal lateral force distribution of SC and ‘partial’ SC steel braced frames is investigated. • The energy factor design spectra are established, especially for the ‘partial’ SC system. • The PBSD procedure considering the modified lateral force distribution for the steel braced frames is proposed. • The ‘partial’ SC system (e.g., β = 0.75) appears to be a desirable option for the design of steel braced frames.